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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. roll — a cake
  4. club — for dancing
  5. tear — from crying
  6. club — for golf
  7. chest — of your body
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — child
  14. club — a group
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. tear — to rip
  17. capital — money
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. vault — a safe
  21. roll — a list
  22. capital — a city
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pitch — completely

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