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: trunk · cold · row · jam · board · chest · pound · suit

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. chest — of your body
  3. cold — an illness
  4. pound — a weight
  5. suit — clothes
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. board — to get on
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. chest — a box
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. suit — to fit
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. chest — of your body
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. row — to paddle
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. board — a committee
  19. row — a line
  20. suit — in cards
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. pound — for dogs

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