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 120 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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. last — final
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. shower — rain
  5. shower — to wash
  6. craft — a skill
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. rash — a series
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rule — government
  11. craft — boats
  12. drill — the tool
  13. bat — the animal
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. last — to go on
  16. last — finally
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. drill — a practice
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. perch — the fish
  22. rash — hasty
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. rule — a law

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