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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. spring — of water
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a line of people
  5. tear — from crying
  6. spring — the season
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bank — of a river
  10. spring — a coil
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. tear — from crying
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. bank — for money
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. bank — for money
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. file — a tool
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. tear — to rip

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