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 116 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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — a phone
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. drill — a practice
  6. perch — the fish
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. snap — to click
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. drill — the tool
  18. cell — in biology
  19. drill — army training
  20. mine — for digging
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. straw — dry grass

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