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 laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. bear — the animal
  9. chest — of your body
  10. sharp — clever
  11. ground — crushed
  12. scale — in music
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. chest — a box
  15. ground — a position
  16. foot — a measure
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. ground — the earth
  20. scale — size or range
  21. stem — to come from
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. bear — the animal

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