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 116 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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. rest — what's left
  3. stock — shares
  4. rule — government
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. file — a line of people
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. sharp — clever
  10. tear — from crying
  11. stock — goods
  12. file — a document
  13. file — a tool
  14. band — a music group
  15. band — a ring
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. rule — a law
  19. content — happy
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. content — the amount
  23. rest — a break
  24. rest — what's left

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