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 116 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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. face — to confront
  8. bat — the animal
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. rest — what's left
  11. race — the arms race
  12. file — a document
  13. face — part of the head
  14. file — a tool
  15. race — a contest
  16. hand — help
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. hand — in cards
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. file — a line of people
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. rest — a break
  23. face — to point toward
  24. race — humankind

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