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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. staff — employees
  3. kid — to tease
  4. toast — bread
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. kid — child
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. tear — to rip
  9. last — to go on
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — for digging
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. tear — from crying
  15. last — final
  16. bat — the animal
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. tear — from crying
  19. staff — employees
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. staff — a stick
  24. mine — an explosive

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