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: stock · straw · roll · lash · rule · tear · patient · face

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. rule — government
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. stock — shares
  6. face — part of the head
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. stock — goods
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. rule — a law
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. face — to point toward
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. tear — to rip
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. tear — from crying
  22. roll — a cake
  23. tear — from crying
  24. roll — a list

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