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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. present — a gift
  4. swing — music
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. present — there
  7. bark — to shout
  8. scale — size or range
  9. swing — to play on
  10. rush — hurry
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — in music
  14. pitch — completely
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. swing — in golf
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. toast — bread
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cell — a phone
  22. present — the time now
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. pitch — a sports field

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