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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. face — to confront
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. content — the amount
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. face — to point toward
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — a subject
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. bat — the animal
  12. chest — of your body
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. field — for sport
  16. squash — the sport
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. squash — to crush
  20. chest — a box
  21. face — part of the head
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. content — happy

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