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 · game · face · bear · file · stock · fall · toast

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. fall — the season
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bear — the animal
  6. fall — to drop
  7. bear — the animal
  8. toast — bread
  9. face — to confront
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. stock — goods
  14. chest — of your body
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. file — a document
  17. game — wild animals
  18. face — to point toward
  19. file — a tool
  20. face — part of the head
  21. chest — a box
  22. stock — shares
  23. game — a match
  24. file — a line of people

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