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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. march — music
  3. craft — boats
  4. drill — a practice
  5. drill — army training
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cap — of ice
  8. row — to paddle
  9. march — the month
  10. march — the month
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cold — an illness
  13. drill — the tool
  14. cold — not warm
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bank — of a river
  19. bank — for money
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. row — a line
  23. bank — for money
  24. craft — a skill

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