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: lean · wave · hand · dip · spring · straw · arm · date

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. hand — help
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. dip — to sink
  5. date — the fruit
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. hand — in cards
  10. lean — thin
  11. lean — to bend
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spring — the season
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. spring — of water

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