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: land · wind · row · ground · squash · kid · drill · object

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. row — a line
  3. ground — the earth
  4. kid — child
  5. object — an aim
  6. land — to come down
  7. object — to protest
  8. ground — a position
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. object — a thing
  11. ground — crushed
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. drill — a practice
  14. wind — moving air
  15. land — ground
  16. drill — army training
  17. drill — the tool
  18. land — a country
  19. squash — to crush
  20. kid — to tease
  21. wind — moving air
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. squash — the sport

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