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: content · chair · lean · nail · chest · court · pitcher · fine

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. content — happy
  3. fine — all right
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. chest — of your body
  6. lean — thin
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. court — of a king
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. lean — to bend
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. court — of law
  15. fine — high quality
  16. content — the amount
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. court — for sport
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. chair — a leader
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. chest — a box

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