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 116 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 · pitcher · net · ruler · cold · club · content · rash

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. cold — an illness
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — a group
  8. content — happy
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. club — for dancing
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. rash — hasty
  13. net — for catching
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. net — after costs
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. content — the amount
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. net — in sport
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. rash — a series

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