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 116 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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — for dancing
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bat — the animal
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. land — ground
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. lie — to recline
  14. club — a group
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. land — to come down
  17. march — music
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. march — the month
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. land — a country
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. march — the month

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