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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. lean — thin
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. mine — for digging
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. game — wild animals
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. game — a match
  15. chip — for betting
  16. row — a line
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. row — to paddle
  19. lean — to bend
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. wake — a trail
  24. chip — to eat

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