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 116 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: straw · cold · stem · snap · board · lie · bound · pitcher

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. cold — an illness
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — not warm
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. bound — obliged
  12. stem — to come from
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. bound — certain
  17. lie — to recline
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. board — a committee
  20. board — to get on
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. bound — tied together
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. snap — to click

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