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 124 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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. bass — low music
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. bass — the fish
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. tear — from crying
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. face — part of the head
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cell — a phone
  12. bound — certain
  13. bound — obliged
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. face — to point toward
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. face — to confront
  18. tear — from crying
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. bound — tied together
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. cell — in biology

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