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 120 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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. wind — moving air
  3. staff — employees
  4. last — final
  5. spring — of water
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. spring — a coil
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. last — to go on
  10. pound — a weight
  11. spring — the season
  12. mate — to breed
  13. row — to paddle
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. staff — employees
  18. last — finally
  19. mark — a grade
  20. wind — moving air
  21. mark — a trace
  22. mate — a friend
  23. row — a line
  24. staff — a stick

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