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: hand · wave · roll · stock · tear · cell · charge · lash

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. stock — shares
  4. hand — in cards
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — in biology
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. roll — a cake
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. tear — from crying
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. tear — from crying
  14. hand — help
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. charge — a price
  17. tear — to rip
  18. stock — goods
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. roll — a list
  22. charge — electricity
  23. cell — a phone
  24. charge — in control

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