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 116 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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. kid — child
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kid — to tease
  8. band — a ring
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. game — wild animals
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. land — ground
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. perch — the fish
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. row — a line
  18. kick — in football
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. lie — to recline
  21. land — a country
  22. band — a music group
  23. row — to paddle
  24. game — a match

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