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: pitcher · land · shower · present · track · tear · game · cue

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. present — a gift
  3. cue — a signal
  4. cue — a hint
  5. present — the time now
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. shower — to wash
  10. land — a country
  11. cue — for pool
  12. tear — from crying
  13. track — a path
  14. game — a match
  15. land — to come down
  16. track — a song
  17. present — there
  18. land — ground
  19. game — wild animals
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. shower — rain
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. track — to keep track
  24. tear — from crying

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