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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. net — for catching
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. last — finally
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. file — a document
  9. bat — the animal
  10. net — in sport
  11. roll — a cake
  12. cue — a signal
  13. file — a tool
  14. cue — for pool
  15. file — a line of people
  16. cue — a hint
  17. pound — a weight
  18. net — after costs
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — final
  22. race — humankind
  23. roll — a list
  24. race — a contest

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