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: pitch · tear · cabinet · present · press · chest · rest · land

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. chest — of your body
  3. present — a gift
  4. chest — of your body
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. land — ground
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. chest — a box
  10. tear — to rip
  11. rest — a break
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. press — newspapers
  14. press — a publisher
  15. rest — what's left
  16. pitch — completely
  17. present — there
  18. present — the time now
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. rest — what's left
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — a country

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