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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pit — in a race
  6. face — to confront
  7. chest — of your body
  8. face — part of the head
  9. tear — from crying
  10. face — to point toward
  11. fork — in a road
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. current — happening now
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. capital — a city
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. current — electric
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. row — a line
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. current — of water

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