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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. present — there
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. bear — the animal
  5. object — to protest
  6. press — a publisher
  7. object — a thing
  8. object — an aim
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. chair — a leader
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. present — a gift
  13. kid — child
  14. press — to push
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. press — newspapers
  17. bear — the animal
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. snap — to click
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. present — the time now
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. arm — part of the body

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