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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. fine — all right
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. spell — letters
  8. rest — what's left
  9. file — a document
  10. file — a tool
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. spell — a short time
  13. rest — a break
  14. kick — in football
  15. rest — what's left
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. fine — high quality
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. spell — magic
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. file — a line of people

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