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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. season — in sport
  5. content — happy
  6. cue — a signal
  7. mark — a grade
  8. race — the arms race
  9. race — humankind
  10. content — the amount
  11. cue — a hint
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. cold — not warm
  15. mark — a trace
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. cold — an illness
  19. wake — a trail
  20. race — a contest
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. cue — for pool
  24. season — of the year

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