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: sharp · pass · race · cold · straw · spell · present · rule

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. race — humankind
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. pass — a permit
  5. rule — government
  6. cold — an illness
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. spell — letters
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — a contest
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. present — there
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. present — a gift
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. spell — a short time
  19. rule — a law
  20. present — the time now
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. spell — magic
  23. cold — not warm
  24. rule — to rule out

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