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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. key — for a lock
  4. key — in music
  5. key — the most important part
  6. bulb — for light
  7. content — happy
  8. bulb — for light
  9. content — the amount
  10. chest — a box
  11. chest — of your body
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. game — wild animals
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. game — a match
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. chest — of your body
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. cold — not warm
  23. fine — all right
  24. fine — high quality

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