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 120 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bat · temple · march · chest · ground · stick

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. march — the month
  5. ground — crushed
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. chest — of your body
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. march — music
  10. bat — the animal
  11. march — the month
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. ground — a position
  16. ground — the earth
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. chest — a box

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