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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. face — to point toward
  4. net — after costs
  5. ground — the earth
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. key — for a lock
  8. row — to paddle
  9. staff — employees
  10. key — in music
  11. net — in sport
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pit — in a race
  14. ground — a position
  15. wound — an injury
  16. net — for catching
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. ground — crushed
  19. row — a line
  20. staff — a stick
  21. staff — employees
  22. key — the most important part
  23. face — part of the head
  24. wound — an injury

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