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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chair — a leader
  7. land — to come down
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. land — a country
  10. roll — a cake
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. snap — to click
  14. roll — a list
  15. rush — hurry
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. ground — a position
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — the earth
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — to wash
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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