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 120 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: racket · shower · hand · board · coach · degree · wind · mine

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. board — a committee
  4. hand — in cards
  5. shower — rain
  6. degree — temperature
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. mine — for digging
  9. degree — an amount
  10. hand — help
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. shower — to wash
  14. wind — moving air
  15. board — to get on
  16. wind — moving air
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. degree — from a university
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. mine — belonging to me

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