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: cold · firm · roll · last · snap · stock · pop · tube

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. tube — the underground
  3. pop — music
  4. last — final
  5. firm — steady
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. tube — a container
  9. firm — a company
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. last — finally
  12. firm — decided
  13. snap — to click
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. stock — shares
  16. stock — goods
  17. pop — to visit
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. roll — a cake
  21. pop — soda
  22. last — to go on
  23. roll — a list
  24. cold — not warm

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