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: squash · wind · rest · dip · spring · chest · march · saw

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. squash — the sport
  3. chest — of your body
  4. rest — what's left
  5. march — the month
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. squash — to crush
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. saw — the tool
  11. dip — to sink
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wind — moving air
  15. march — music
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — of water
  19. chest — a box
  20. march — the month
  21. rest — what's left
  22. saw — the tool
  23. rest — a break
  24. spring — the season

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