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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. 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. hand — help
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. plane — a tool
  5. squash — to crush
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. key — the most important part
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. pound — a weight
  12. key — in music
  13. hand — in cards
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. cell — a phone
  16. key — for a lock
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. mine — for digging
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. cell — in biology
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. squash — the sport
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. 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