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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. chair — a leader
  3. scale — in music
  4. march — the month
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. kid — to tease
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. march — music
  12. mine — for digging
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. kid — child
  20. scale — size or range
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. wake — a trail
  23. march — the month
  24. scale — for weighing

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