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: straw · wind · shower · staff · bay · perch · spring · race

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. staff — a stick
  3. race — humankind
  4. spring — the season
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. race — a contest
  8. spring — of water
  9. perch — the fish
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. shower — to wash
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. wind — moving air
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. race — the arms race
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — employees
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. shower — rain
  21. wind — moving air
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. spring — a coil

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