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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. bear — the animal
  3. cell — a phone
  4. band — a music group
  5. press — to push
  6. pass — a permit
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. cell — in biology
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. bear — the animal
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. press — newspapers
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. band — a ring
  18. kid — to tease
  19. file — a tool
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a line of people
  23. press — a publisher
  24. cell — in a prison

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