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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. cold — an illness
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. kid — to tease
  8. land — to come down
  9. present — a gift
  10. present — the time now
  11. land — a country
  12. bank — for money
  13. cold — not warm
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. land — ground
  17. present — there
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. pass — a permit
  22. bank — for money
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bank — of a river

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