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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. lean — to bend
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. track — a path
  5. kid — child
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. content — the amount
  8. content — happy
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. game — a match
  12. game — wild animals
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. pound — a weight
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. track — a song
  19. track — to keep track
  20. kid — to tease
  21. stem — to come from
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. racket — a loud noise

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