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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bass — low music
  5. drill — the tool
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a document
  8. season — of the year
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. drill — a practice
  11. land — ground
  12. bass — the fish
  13. land — to come down
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. fork — in a road
  16. tear — from crying
  17. land — a country
  18. file — a line of people
  19. drill — army training
  20. season — in sport
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. tear — from crying

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