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 116 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: fall · stick · court · stock · cold · bay · wind · chip

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. stock — goods
  4. fall — to drop
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. chip — to eat
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. court — for sport
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. stock — shares
  13. cold — not warm
  14. wind — moving air
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. wind — moving air
  18. court — of a king
  19. fall — the season
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cold — an illness
  23. chip — for betting
  24. court — of law

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