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 · spring · staff · fall · wind · bark · bass · bore

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. spring — the season
  4. staff — employees
  5. fall — to drop
  6. chair — a leader
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. staff — employees
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — to tire
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. wind — moving air
  14. spring — a coil
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fall — the season
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bass — low music
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. staff — a stick
  24. spring — 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