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: season · bay · wind · cold · wound · safe · march · game

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. season — of the year
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wind — moving air
  5. march — the month
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. cold — not warm
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. march — the month
  13. season — in sport
  14. game — a match
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. cold — an illness
  18. march — music
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. game — wild animals
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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