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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. content — the amount
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. pit — a hole
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. pit — in a race
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — not warm
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. track — a song
  16. content — happy
  17. hand — in cards
  18. press — to push
  19. press — newspapers
  20. deal — to handle
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. track — a path
  23. press — a publisher
  24. track — to keep track

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