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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. pop — soda
  3. face — part of the head
  4. pop — to visit
  5. face — to confront
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. spell — letters
  8. spell — magic
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. bulb — for light
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. bulb — for light
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. spell — a short time
  17. face — to point toward
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. pop — music
  22. bat — the animal
  23. shower — rain
  24. shower — to wash

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