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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. ground — a position
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. kid — child
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. kid — to tease
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bat — the animal
  18. snap — to click
  19. ground — the earth
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. ground — crushed
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. straw — a straw man

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