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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. spell — letters
  3. track — a path
  4. spell — magic
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a dance
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. ball — a great time
  12. object — a thing
  13. file — a tool
  14. content — happy
  15. object — an aim
  16. spell — a short time
  17. file — a document
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. file — a line of people
  21. track — a song
  22. track — to keep track
  23. content — the amount
  24. nail — for a hammer

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