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: arm · race · vault · mine · net · shower · bat · snap

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. net — after costs
  5. race — humankind
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — a contest
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. snap — to click
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. shower — to wash
  15. net — for catching
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. net — in sport
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. mine — for digging
  21. shower — rain
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. vault — a safe
  24. mine — belonging to me

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