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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. file — a document
  3. mate — a partner
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. fine — high quality
  7. rash — a series
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. fine — all right
  12. march — the month
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. mate — a friend
  15. file — a tool
  16. game — wild animals
  17. mate — to breed
  18. march — the month
  19. file — a line of people
  20. march — music
  21. dip — to sink
  22. game — a match
  23. hand — in cards
  24. rash — hasty

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