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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. present — a gift
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — a box
  6. present — there
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. club — for golf
  11. press — a publisher
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. press — to push
  15. present — the time now
  16. club — for dancing
  17. chest — of your body
  18. press — newspapers
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. fork — in a road
  21. club — a group
  22. hand — in cards
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. pitcher — a jug

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