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: bat · stick · file · club · cell · wind · board · straw

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. club — for golf
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. club — for dancing
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. file — a line of people
  7. board — to get on
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. file — a tool
  11. board — a committee
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. file — a document
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. cell — in biology
  17. club — a group
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cell — a phone
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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