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: tear · drill · wind · kid · swing · bat · net · deal

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. drill — the tool
  3. net — for catching
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. tear — to rip
  6. net — after costs
  7. swing — music
  8. drill — a practice
  9. drill — army training
  10. kid — to tease
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. net — in sport
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bat — the animal
  20. swing — in golf
  21. kid — child
  22. tear — from crying
  23. swing — to play on
  24. deal — to handle

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