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: vault · snap · mark · bat · bear · chest · ground · pitcher

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. chest — a box
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bat — the animal
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. mark — a grade
  10. ground — the earth
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bear — the animal
  13. ground — crushed
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. bear — the animal
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. mark — a trace
  19. ground — a position
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. vault — a safe
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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