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 120 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: club · cold · stock · craft · stick · mug · kid · track

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  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. stock — a soup base
  2. kid — child
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a song
  5. kid — to tease
  6. cold — an illness
  7. craft — a skill
  8. club — a group
  9. club — for golf
  10. craft — boats
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. track — a path
  13. stock — goods
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. stock — shares
  16. mug — a cup
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. mug — to rob
  20. club — for dancing
  21. mug — a face
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. cold — not warm
  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