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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. chest — of your body
  3. mate — a partner
  4. last — finally
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. last — final
  7. bore — to tire
  8. file — a line of people
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. chest — of your body
  13. file — a tool
  14. deal — to handle
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. bore — to drill
  17. last — to go on
  18. mate — a friend
  19. fork — in a road
  20. chest — a box
  21. file — a document
  22. kid — child
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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