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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. land — to come down
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bat — the animal
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. band — a ring
  9. game — a match
  10. band — a music group
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. file — a document
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. land — ground
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. land — a country
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. file — a tool

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