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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — a line
  5. march — the month
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wind — moving air
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. row — to paddle
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. march — the month

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