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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. rash — a series
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. track — a song
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. chest — a box
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. cold — an illness
  11. chest — of your body
  12. track — a path
  13. track — to keep track
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. rash — hasty
  17. cold — not warm
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. foot — a measure
  20. sharp — clever
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. chest — of your body
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. dip — to sink

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