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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  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. lean — thin
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. last — finally
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. last — final
  8. squash — to crush
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. march — the month
  11. pop — soda
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. pop — music
  14. march — music
  15. pop — to visit
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. squash — the sport
  19. march — the month
  20. lean — to bend
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. last — to go on
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  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