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: wind · bowl · bore · wave · file · rush · kick · fan

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. bore — to tire
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. file — a tool
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bore — to drill
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. rush — hurry
  22. kick — in football
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a document

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