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 116 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. last — final
  3. content — the amount
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. last — to go on
  6. wind — moving air
  7. present — the time now
  8. content — happy
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. last — finally
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. wind — moving air
  18. band — a ring
  19. present — a gift
  20. band — a music group
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. present — there
  23. lie — to recline
  24. pitcher — a jug

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