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: content · cold · foot · hide · land · bay · dip · mark

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. mark — a trace
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. land — a country
  9. dip — to sink
  10. land — to come down
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — happy
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — not warm
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. cold — an illness
  21. land — ground
  22. foot — a measure
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. mark — a grade

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