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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. chip — to eat
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. chair — a leader
  8. bat — the animal
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. chip — for betting
  12. shower — rain
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. rash — a series
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. rash — hasty
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. mark — a grade
  22. mark — a trace
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. shower — to wash

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