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 120 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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. race — humankind
  3. object — a thing
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. field — for sport
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. race — the arms race
  9. last — final
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. object — an aim
  12. last — to go on
  13. field — farmland
  14. hand — help
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. hand — in cards
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. race — a contest
  19. kick — in football
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. last — finally
  23. field — a subject
  24. kick — a thrill

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