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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. court — for sport
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. drill — army training
  6. row — to paddle
  7. drill — a practice
  8. band — a music group
  9. row — a line
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. race — humankind
  12. band — a ring
  13. court — of a king
  14. face — to point toward
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. face — part of the head
  17. drill — the tool
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. race — a contest
  20. court — of law
  21. rush — hurry
  22. rule — a law
  23. face — to confront
  24. race — the arms race

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