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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. face — to confront
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. sharp — clever
  5. last — finally
  6. bat — the animal
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. can — a tin
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. kid — to tease
  12. face — to point toward
  13. can — a tin
  14. face — part of the head
  15. kid — child
  16. game — a match
  17. lean — to bend
  18. can — to be able to
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. game — wild animals
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — final
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. game — a kind of play

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