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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. ground — a position
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — part of the head
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. drill — a practice
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. kid — child
  9. drill — the tool
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. row — to paddle
  13. plane — a tool
  14. lie — to recline
  15. drill — army training
  16. kid — to tease
  17. ground — the earth
  18. fork — in a road
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. ground — crushed
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. row — a line
  23. face — to point toward
  24. lie — an untruth

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