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

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. fall — to drop
  3. chest — of your body
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. chest — of your body
  6. season — of the year
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. fall — to drop
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. chest — a box
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. fork — in a road
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. lean — thin
  18. season — in sport
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. fall — the season

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