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 124 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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. drill — army training
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. field — for sport
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. cold — not warm
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — farmland
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. kick — in football
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. drill — a practice
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cold — an illness
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. drill — the tool

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