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: land · chest · net · dip · wound · row · stick · plane

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. land — to come down
  5. dip — to sink
  6. land — a country
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. net — after costs
  10. plane — a tool
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. chest — of your body
  13. row — a line
  14. chest — a box
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. land — ground
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. row — to paddle
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wound — an injury
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. net — for catching
  24. wound — an injury

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