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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. rest — what's left
  6. mark — a trace
  7. ground — a position
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. kid — child
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. rest — a break
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. ground — crushed
  15. cold — not warm
  16. kid — to tease
  17. snap — to click
  18. cold — an illness
  19. branch — a division
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. mark — a grade
  22. rest — what's left
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. ground — the earth

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