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: chest · sharp · kid · dip · bound · wound · can · field

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. sharp — clever
  5. chest — of your body
  6. wound — an injury
  7. bound — obliged
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. dip — to sink
  10. can — to be able to
  11. kid — to tease
  12. chest — a box
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. chest — of your body
  16. field — a subject
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — tied together
  19. kid — child
  20. field — farmland
  21. can — a tin
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. can — a tin
  24. field — for sport

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