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: safe · race · cold · ground · rock · toast · saw · stick

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. ground — a position
  4. rock — music
  5. ground — crushed
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. rock — a stone
  12. toast — bread
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. ground — the earth
  15. saw — the tool
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. cold — not warm
  18. saw — the tool
  19. race — humankind
  20. race — the arms race
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. cold — an illness
  24. race — a contest

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