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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. bat — the animal
  3. kick — in football
  4. file — a line of people
  5. cell — a phone
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. file — a tool
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. charge — a price
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. land — ground
  13. charge — electricity
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. land — to come down
  16. lie — to recline
  17. charge — in control
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. cell — in biology
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. file — a document
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. land — a country

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