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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. court — for sport
  4. drill — the tool
  5. court — of a king
  6. drill — a practice
  7. date — the fruit
  8. court — of law
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. bear — the animal
  11. drill — army training
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — crushed
  14. tear — from crying
  15. ground — a position
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. tear — to rip

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