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: wound · shower · spring · lash · bulb · stock · mine · sharp

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. bulb — for light
  4. stock — shares
  5. wound — an injury
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. stock — goods
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. shower — rain
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. bulb — for light
  13. shower — to wash
  14. wound — an injury
  15. sharp — clever
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. spring — a coil
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. spring — of water
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. spring — the season
  24. mine — an explosive

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