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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. last — final
  4. face — to confront
  5. present — a gift
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. land — a country
  8. land — to come down
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. last — to go on
  11. land — ground
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. stock — goods
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. last — finally
  16. face — part of the head
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. cell — a phone
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. stock — shares
  21. cell — in biology
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. present — the time now
  24. face — to point toward

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