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: tear · arm · lean · fork · kid · drill · mine · ground

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. ground — crushed
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. drill — a practice
  5. ground — the earth
  6. drill — the tool
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. lean — thin
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. kid — to tease
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. tear — from crying
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. tear — from crying
  17. lean — to bend
  18. mine — for digging
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. tear — to rip
  21. drill — army training
  22. fork — in a road
  23. kid — child
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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