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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. rest — what's left
  3. rest — a break
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. snap — to click
  7. kid — child
  8. wound — an injury
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. rest — what's left
  12. kid — to tease
  13. swing — music
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. cold — not warm
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. swing — in golf
  20. cold — an illness
  21. swing — to play on
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. wound — an injury

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