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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. band — a music group
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. chest — of your body
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. cap — a hat
  8. band — a ring
  9. scale — in music
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. pit — in a race
  12. cap — a lid
  13. scale — size or range
  14. cap — of ice
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. bear — the animal
  17. pit — a hole
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. chest — a box
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. chest — of your body
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. bear — the animal

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