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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. row — a line
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. row — to paddle
  7. bat — the animal
  8. ground — a position
  9. plane — a tool
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — money
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. capital — a city
  18. foot — a measure
  19. snap — to click
  20. ground — the earth
  21. land — ground
  22. land — a country
  23. land — to come down
  24. ground — crushed

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