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: wind · shower · chest · hand · lean · mug · chair · season

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. shower — to wash
  3. chair — a leader
  4. mug — to rob
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. mug — a cup
  8. wind — moving air
  9. mug — a face
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. wind — moving air
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. lean — thin
  16. season — of the year
  17. chest — of your body
  18. hand — in cards
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. lean — to bend
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. shower — rain
  24. hand — help

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