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: race · stock · trunk · leaves · chest · arm · squash · shower

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. chest — of your body
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. chest — a box
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. squash — the sport
  9. stock — goods
  10. stock — shares
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. chest — of your body
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — the arms race
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — to wash
  23. race — humankind
  24. trunk — of a tree

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