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 120 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: cabinet · lean · bat · degree · lash · hand · stick · land

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. hand — help
  4. land — to come down
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. hand — in cards
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bat — the animal
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. land — ground
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. land — a country
  24. lean — thin

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