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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  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. bore — to tire
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. chair — a leader
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. cell — a phone
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. rash — hasty
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. cell — in biology
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. pound — a weight
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. rash — a series
  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