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've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. cue — a signal
  3. pit — a hole
  4. kid — child
  5. kid — to tease
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. snap — to click
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. wound — an injury
  15. march — music
  16. roll — a cake
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. cue — for pool
  19. wound — an injury
  20. content — the amount
  21. roll — a list
  22. pit — in a race
  23. content — happy
  24. cue — a hint

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