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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. bat — the animal
  8. cap — of ice
  9. spring — the season
  10. cap — a hat
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. cap — a lid
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. stand — to bear
  17. spring — of water
  18. kid — to tease
  19. spring — a coil
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. rule — a law
  24. kid — child

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