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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — ground
  6. lie — to recline
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. cold — an illness
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. land — a country
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. mark — a grade
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. chest — a box
  15. chip — for betting
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. board — a committee
  19. cold — not warm
  20. chip — to eat
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. mark — a trace
  24. pass — a permit

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