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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. clip — for paper
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. content — happy
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. content — the amount
  10. land — ground
  11. board — a committee
  12. roll — a cake
  13. roll — a list
  14. chest — of your body
  15. land — to come down
  16. chest — a box
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. clip — to cut
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. board — to get on
  22. land — a country
  23. clip — a video
  24. hide — to keep secret

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