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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. bore — to tire
  4. swing — music
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. mate — a partner
  7. rule — a law
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. stem — to come from
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. mate — a friend
  14. bore — to drill
  15. row — to paddle
  16. swing — to play on
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. swing — in golf
  21. rule — government
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — in cards
  24. row — a line

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