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 116 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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. face — to confront
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — a coil
  5. board — a committee
  6. face — to point toward
  7. face — part of the head
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. spring — the season
  10. hand — in cards
  11. board — to get on
  12. rule — a law
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. fall — to drop
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. hand — help
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. branch — a division
  22. rule — government
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. kick — in football

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