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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. last — finally
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. game — wild animals
  5. rash — hasty
  6. rash — a series
  7. cue — for pool
  8. last — to go on
  9. net — in sport
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — not warm
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. cue — a hint
  14. last — final
  15. cold — an illness
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spring — the season
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. spring — of water
  20. cue — a signal
  21. net — after costs
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. game — a match
  24. net — for catching

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