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 120 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: saw · chest · wave · hand · lash · file · fork · swing

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. chest — of your body
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. file — a line of people
  7. fork — in a road
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. file — a tool
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. saw — the tool
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. file — a document
  14. swing — music
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. swing — to play on
  17. chest — of your body
  18. hand — in cards
  19. saw — the tool
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. chest — a box
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. swing — in golf

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