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: chair · bulb · drill · patient · cold · shower · wind · current

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. cold — not warm
  3. wind — moving air
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. drill — army training
  6. current — happening now
  7. shower — to wash
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. bulb — for light
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. chair — a leader
  13. shower — rain
  14. current — electric
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. drill — the tool
  17. cold — an illness
  18. wind — moving air
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bulb — for light
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. current — of water

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