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: coach · spring · kick · straw · season · hand · deal · stem

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — in sport
  5. spring — the season
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. stem — to come from
  13. hand — in cards
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. hand — help
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. deal — to handle
  19. spring — of water
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. spring — a coil
  24. kick — in football

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