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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. lie — to recline
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. cold — an illness
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. pop — soda
  7. march — music
  8. cold — not warm
  9. march — the month
  10. pop — to visit
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. chip — to eat
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. pop — music
  16. chip — for betting
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. march — the month
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. trunk — of a tree

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