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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. content — happy
  3. cell — a phone
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. tear — to rip
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. cap — a hat
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. swing — to play on
  10. cap — of ice
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. swing — in golf
  15. cell — in biology
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. content — the amount
  18. ground — crushed
  19. tear — from crying
  20. ground — a position
  21. tear — from crying
  22. ground — the earth
  23. swing — music
  24. cell — in a prison

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