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: chest · mate · arm · kid · spell · roll · ruler · bat

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. roll — a cake
  3. kid — to tease
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. roll — a list
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. spell — letters
  9. chest — a box
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. spell — a short time
  13. kid — child
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. bat — the animal
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. mate — to breed
  20. chest — of your body
  21. spell — magic
  22. chest — of your body
  23. mate — a partner
  24. bat — for baseball

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