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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. mate — a partner
  3. chest — a box
  4. row — to paddle
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. fork — in a road
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. row — a line
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. mate — to breed
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. snap — to click
  18. mate — a friend
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. capital — a city
  22. chest — of your body
  23. capital — money
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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