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 124 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. staff — employees
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. last — final
  7. march — the month
  8. field — farmland
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. staff — a stick
  13. staff — employees
  14. rash — hasty
  15. chair — a leader
  16. field — a subject
  17. current — of water
  18. last — to go on
  19. current — electric
  20. field — for sport
  21. rash — a series
  22. march — music
  23. current — happening now
  24. last — finally

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