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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. field — a subject
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. pit — a hole
  5. lean — to bend
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. kid — to tease
  10. foot — a measure
  11. field — for sport
  12. press — a publisher
  13. pit — in a race
  14. press — to push
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. press — newspapers
  18. kick — in football
  19. field — farmland
  20. kid — child
  21. lean — thin
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. foot — the bottom

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