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: cold · fine · kick · rash · hand · craft · spring · file

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. craft — boats
  5. spring — a coil
  6. file — a document
  7. rash — a series
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. hand — in cards
  10. file — a tool
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. rash — hasty
  14. fine — all right
  15. cold — not warm
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. cold — an illness
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. hand — help
  20. fine — high quality
  21. file — a line of people
  22. kick — in football
  23. spring — of water
  24. craft — a skill

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