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 116 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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. tear — from crying
  4. hand — help
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. rush — hurry
  7. press — newspapers
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. scale — in music
  11. cap — a hat
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cap — a lid
  14. press — to push
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. hand — in cards
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. press — a publisher
  19. wound — an injury
  20. tear — to rip
  21. scale — size or range
  22. wound — an injury
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. bat — the animal

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