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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — child
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. mug — to rob
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. stand — to bear
  9. bat — the animal
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. chest — a box
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. mug — a face
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. mug — a cup
  17. key — for a lock
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. key — in music
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. key — the most important part
  23. chest — of your body
  24. straw — a straw man

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