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'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. mate — a friend
  3. bank — for money
  4. drill — a practice
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. ground — the earth
  8. mate — a partner
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cold — not warm
  11. march — music
  12. band — a ring
  13. staff — employees
  14. mate — to breed
  15. march — the month
  16. band — a music group
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. staff — a stick
  20. bank — of a river
  21. drill — the tool
  22. staff — employees
  23. drill — army training
  24. march — the month

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