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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. land — ground
  3. drill — army training
  4. wind — moving air
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bound — certain
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bound — obliged
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. drill — a practice
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. bound — tied together
  14. wind — moving air
  15. season — in sport
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — a line
  21. land — a country
  22. row — to paddle
  23. season — of the year
  24. land — to come down

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