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: key · spell · hand · rush · mate · shower · file · racket

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. mate — to breed
  3. hand — in cards
  4. spell — letters
  5. mate — a partner
  6. file — a document
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. file — a line of people
  10. shower — to wash
  11. file — a tool
  12. rush — hurry
  13. mate — a friend
  14. key — the most important part
  15. key — in music
  16. shower — rain
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. spell — magic
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. key — for a lock
  23. spell — a short time
  24. rush — a thrill

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