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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. chest — a box
  3. clip — a video
  4. hand — in cards
  5. pit — in a race
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. drill — a practice
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. pit — a hole
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. stock — goods
  19. clip — for paper
  20. stock — shares
  21. clip — to cut
  22. drill — army training
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. drill — the tool

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