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: spell · content · temple · hand · pitcher · tear · rash · cell

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. tear — from crying
  4. spell — letters
  5. spell — magic
  6. hand — help
  7. spell — a short time
  8. tear — from crying
  9. cell — in biology
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. content — happy
  12. tear — to rip
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. hand — in cards
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. rash — a series
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. rash — hasty
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. content — the amount
  24. cell — in a prison

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