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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chip — to eat
  3. present — there
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. chest — a box
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. chip — for betting
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. cell — a phone
  13. chest — of your body
  14. saw — the tool
  15. spell — magic
  16. saw — the tool
  17. present — the time now
  18. spell — letters
  19. spell — a short time
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. pit — in a race
  22. pit — a hole
  23. present — a gift
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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