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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. charge — in control
  6. kid — child
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. charge — a price
  9. chip — for betting
  10. race — humankind
  11. race — the arms race
  12. saw — the tool
  13. ground — a position
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. chip — to eat
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. ground — the earth
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. saw — the tool
  21. charge — electricity
  22. ground — crushed
  23. race — a contest
  24. patient — a sick person

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