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: chest · present · spring · straw · ball · current · mark · swing

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. ball — a dance
  5. swing — in golf
  6. current — of water
  7. swing — to play on
  8. spring — of water
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. swing — music
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. spring — the season
  14. current — happening now
  15. mark — a grade
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. present — a gift
  19. ball — a great time
  20. spring — a coil
  21. chest — a box
  22. present — there
  23. present — the time now
  24. mark — a trace

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