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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. game — wild animals
  3. content — the amount
  4. content — happy
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. face — to point toward
  7. mate — a friend
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. game — a match
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. face — to confront
  16. row — a line
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. face — part of the head
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. mate — a partner
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. row — to paddle

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