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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. tear — from crying
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. pass — a permit
  5. hand — help
  6. date — the fruit
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. tear — from crying
  9. rest — what's left
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — the season
  13. key — in music
  14. rest — a break
  15. tear — to rip
  16. squash — the sport
  17. squash — to crush
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. key — for a lock
  20. spring — of water
  21. hand — in cards
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. rest — what's left

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