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 band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. file — a line of people
  3. drill — a practice
  4. drill — army training
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. march — the month
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. file — a document
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. net — for catching
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. file — a tool
  14. drill — the tool
  15. net — in sport
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. rush — hurry
  18. net — after costs
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. march — the month
  24. bat — the animal

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