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

Word bank: mate · straw · present · snap · last · bat · foot · season

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. present — a gift
  3. season — of the year
  4. present — the time now
  5. season — in sport
  6. last — final
  7. last — to go on
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. bat — the animal
  10. snap — to click
  11. mate — to breed
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. present — there
  14. mate — a partner
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. last — finally
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. mate — a friend

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