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 band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. season — of the year
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. race — humankind
  7. club — for dancing
  8. cell — in biology
  9. club — for golf
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — the arms race
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. cell — a phone
  17. chair — a leader
  18. march — the month
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. march — the month
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a match
  23. season — in sport
  24. club — a group

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