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 124 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. bear — the animal
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. land — ground
  6. plane — a tool
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. perch — the fish
  9. present — the time now
  10. cold — not warm
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bear — the animal
  14. present — there
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. cold — an illness
  18. land — to come down
  19. land — a country
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. mine — for digging
  22. present — a gift
  23. kick — in football
  24. cold — the Cold War

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