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: perch · straw · key · bear · stick · content · cold · land

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — the amount
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. bear — the animal
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. land — a country
  9. cold — not warm
  10. land — ground
  11. key — the most important part
  12. key — for a lock
  13. content — happy
  14. bear — the animal
  15. key — in music
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — the fish
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. land — to come down

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