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 116 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. bat — the animal
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. board — to get on
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. cell — a phone
  14. march — the month
  15. cell — in biology
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. board — a committee
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. march — the month
  20. kid — child
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. kid — to tease
  24. march — music

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