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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. toast — bread
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bound — tied together
  5. kid — child
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. rest — a break
  9. rest — what's left
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. cold — an illness
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. snap — to click
  17. cold — not warm
  18. band — a ring
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bound — certain
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. band — a music group
  24. pitch — completely

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