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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. clip — for paper
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. game — a match
  6. lie — to recline
  7. clip — a video
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. tear — to rip
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. tear — from crying
  12. clip — to cut
  13. tear — from crying
  14. game — wild animals
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. chest — of your body
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. chest — of your body
  21. pitch — completely
  22. mine — for digging
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. patient — a sick person

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