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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. fall — to drop
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. wound — an injury
  6. fall — the season
  7. key — the most important part
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. kick — in football
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. scale — in music
  12. key — for a lock
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. pitch — completely
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. fall — to drop
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. key — in music
  24. bat — the animal

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