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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. cold — not warm
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. spell — a short time
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. cold — an illness
  11. race — the arms race
  12. march — the month
  13. date — the fruit
  14. race — humankind
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. race — a contest
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. saw — the tool
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. spell — letters
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. spell — magic
  24. stand — to bear

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