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: stem · tear · present · sharp · cold · scale · lash · foot

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. scale — in music
  4. present — a gift
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. present — the time now
  9. foot — a measure
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. scale — size or range
  12. stem — to come from
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. present — there
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. tear — to rip
  17. cold — not warm
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. sharp — clever
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. cold — an illness
  24. stem — a stem cell

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