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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. cold — not warm
  4. object — to protest
  5. kick — in football
  6. drill — army training
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. drill — the tool
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. cold — an illness
  12. drill — a practice
  13. season — of the year
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — in sport
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. object — a thing
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. object — an aim
  24. season — in sport

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