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: wake · sharp · track · band · bat · wind · current · spring

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. spring — a coil
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. band — a music group
  5. wake — a trail
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bat — the animal
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. current — happening now
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. track — a path
  15. spring — the season
  16. spring — of water
  17. sharp — clever
  18. track — to keep track
  19. current — of water
  20. track — a song
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. current — electric
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

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