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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. squash — to crush
  4. file — a line of people
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. net — for catching
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. net — after costs
  12. file — a document
  13. net — in sport
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. file — a tool
  16. snap — to click
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. fall — to drop
  19. squash — the sport
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — an illness
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. fall — the season
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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