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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. spell — a short time
  3. stem — to come from
  4. hand — in cards
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. hand — help
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. spell — letters
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — a stick
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — a box
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. staff — employees
  17. cap — a hat
  18. can — to be able to
  19. can — a tin
  20. can — a tin
  21. cap — of ice
  22. spell — magic
  23. bat — the animal
  24. cap — a lid

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