ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cold · lie · ground · pit · rock · shower · board · file

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. ground — the earth
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. lie — to recline
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. ground — a position
  9. shower — to wash
  10. file — a document
  11. shower — rain
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. file — a line of people
  15. board — to get on
  16. rock — a stone
  17. cold — not warm
  18. pit — in a race
  19. board — a committee
  20. pit — a hole
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. rock — music
  23. cold — an illness
  24. file — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com