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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. lean — to bend
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. bear — the animal
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. march — music
  8. chest — of your body
  9. march — the month
  10. pit — in a race
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. chest — a box
  13. pit — a hole
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. fork — in a road
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. bear — the animal
  20. lean — thin
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. chest — of your body
  24. march — the month

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