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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. race — humankind
  4. bark — to shout
  5. file — a tool
  6. file — a line of people
  7. race — the arms race
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. sharp — clever
  14. file — a document
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. race — a contest
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. capital — a city
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. capital — money
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. sharp — with an edge

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