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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. land — a country
  7. saw — the tool
  8. field — for sport
  9. saw — the tool
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. hand — in cards
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. field — farmland
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. field — a subject
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. land — ground
  22. land — to come down
  23. kick — in football
  24. straw — a straw man

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