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: arm · hand · leaves · saw · land · spell · face · calf

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. land — a country
  3. spell — a short time
  4. saw — the tool
  5. land — to come down
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. face — to confront
  9. face — part of the head
  10. hand — help
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. land — ground
  17. spell — magic
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. saw — the tool
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. hand — in cards
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. face — to point toward

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