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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. wound — an injury
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. cue — for pool
  6. mate — to breed
  7. last — to go on
  8. spell — magic
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. spell — letters
  11. cue — a signal
  12. bear — the animal
  13. mate — a partner
  14. cue — a hint
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. last — finally
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bear — the animal
  21. spell — a short time
  22. march — music
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. mate — a friend

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