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. The water is too ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. deal — to handle
  3. hand — in cards
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. roll — a cake
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — an illness
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. roll — a list
  24. patient — a sick person

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