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: kid · wind · press · date · snap · pitcher · bat · pit

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. bat — the animal
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. press — to push
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. snap — to click
  10. wind — moving air
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. press — a publisher
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pit — a hole
  16. date — the fruit
  17. kid — child
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. press — newspapers
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. wind — moving air
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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