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: spring · wind · bowl · fan · tear · craft · stem · cabinet

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. spring — a coil
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. spring — the season
  12. stem — to come from
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — to rip
  15. spring — of water
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. craft — a skill
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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