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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. saw — the tool
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. saw — the tool
  9. rash — hasty
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — a box
  12. pound — a weight
  13. dip — to sink
  14. last — final
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. last — to go on
  21. rash — a series
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. chest — of your body

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