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 116 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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. cell — in biology
  4. wound — an injury
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. wound — an injury
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. ground — the earth
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. staff — employees
  13. ground — crushed
  14. row — a line
  15. row — to paddle
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bat — the animal
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. file — a document
  21. ground — a position
  22. file — a tool
  23. staff — a stick
  24. staff — employees

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