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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. chest — of your body
  3. mine — for digging
  4. stock — shares
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. rest — what's left
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. chest — of your body
  10. stock — goods
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. hand — help
  16. chest — a box
  17. rest — what's left
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. hand — in cards
  23. rest — a break
  24. nail — for a hammer

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