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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. pit — a hole
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. plane — a tool
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. dip — to sink
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. pit — in a race
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. mine — for digging
  11. file — a tool
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. file — a document
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. file — a line of people
  18. mine — an explosive

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