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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. last — to go on
  3. ground — the earth
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. march — music
  6. cold — an illness
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. key — in music
  9. object — an aim
  10. last — finally
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. ground — a position
  13. march — the month
  14. cold — not warm
  15. plane — a tool
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. last — final
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. ground — crushed
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. object — to protest
  22. march — the month
  23. object — a thing
  24. key — the most important part

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