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: deal · tear · mouse · file · snap · game · cell · bat

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. game — wild animals
  4. tear — from crying
  5. deal — to handle
  6. snap — to click
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. cell — a phone
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. tear — to rip
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — a match
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. bat — the animal
  22. file — a line of people
  23. file — a document
  24. file — a tool

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