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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. mate — a friend
  3. hand — in cards
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. dip — to sink
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a ring
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. content — happy
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a partner
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. perch — the fish
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. hand — help
  18. content — the amount
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bat — the animal
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. band — a music group
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. bat — for baseball

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