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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. ball — a dance
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. rest — what's left
  10. wake — a trail
  11. ground — crushed
  12. rest — what's left
  13. land — to come down
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. ground — a position
  16. perch — the fish
  17. land — a country
  18. ball — a great time
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. ground — the earth
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. land — ground

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