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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. fine — high quality
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rush — hurry
  5. bore — to tire
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. march — the month
  8. bore — to drill
  9. face — to point toward
  10. clip — a video
  11. march — music
  12. clip — for paper
  13. face — part of the head
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. face — to confront
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. march — the month
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. clip — to cut

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