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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. staff — employees
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. rule — a law
  7. face — to confront
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. staff — employees
  10. face — to point toward
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. staff — a stick
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. rule — government
  17. bat — the animal
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. face — part of the head
  22. fork — in a road
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. leaves — of a tree

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