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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. kid — to tease
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. wound — an injury
  7. chest — of your body
  8. ball — a great time
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. drill — a practice
  11. chest — a box
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. fork — in a road
  16. drill — army training
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. chest — of your body
  19. drill — the tool
  20. ball — a dance
  21. kid — child
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. wound — an injury
  24. arm — part of the body

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