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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. press — a publisher
  4. bat — the animal
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. press — newspapers
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. press — to push
  10. cell — in biology
  11. march — music
  12. kick — in football
  13. wound — an injury
  14. game — wild animals
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. wound — an injury
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. march — the month
  20. cell — a phone
  21. march — the month
  22. game — a match
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. bat — for baseball

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