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: bat · press · coach · bass · cold · present · mine · rock

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. rock — a stone
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bass — low music
  6. present — a gift
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rock — music
  9. mine — for digging
  10. present — the time now
  11. press — newspapers
  12. bass — the fish
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. present — there
  19. bat — the animal
  20. press — to push
  21. cold — not warm
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. press — a publisher
  24. cold — the Cold War

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