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: rest · bank · kid · bat · straw · march · firm · shower

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. rest — what's left
  3. shower — rain
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. march — music
  9. bat — the animal
  10. firm — a company
  11. bank — for money
  12. bank — of a river
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. firm — decided
  16. march — the month
  17. firm — steady
  18. shower — to wash
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. march — the month
  21. bank — for money
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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