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 are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. last — final
  4. row — to paddle
  5. drill — a practice
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. roll — a cake
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. cell — a phone
  10. drill — army training
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. club — for dancing
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. club — for golf
  16. club — a group
  17. bat — the animal
  18. row — a line
  19. drill — the tool
  20. cell — in biology
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. roll — a list

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