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: fan · mine · chest · vault · straw · court · hide · lean

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. court — for sport
  3. vault — a safe
  4. mine — for digging
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. lean — to bend
  8. court — of law
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. chest — a box
  12. lean — thin
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. chest — of your body
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. court — of a king
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. chest — of your body

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