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: stand · rule · wind · land · cap · ball · chest · wound

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. ball — a great time
  3. chest — a box
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — an injury
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. land — a country
  8. chest — of your body
  9. wind — moving air
  10. cap — a lid
  11. land — ground
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. chest — of your body
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a hat
  19. land — to come down
  20. rule — a law
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. ball — a dance
  23. wind — moving air
  24. stand — to bear

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