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: wake · file · snap · foot · squash · tear · spring · bowl

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. squash — to crush
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. spring — the season
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. file — a line of people
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. snap — to click
  10. tear — to rip
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. file — a tool
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. tear — from crying
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. squash — the sport
  17. foot — a measure
  18. spring — a coil
  19. spring — of water
  20. wake — a trail
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. tear — from crying
  24. file — a document

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