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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. current — electric
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. drill — a practice
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. current — of water
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. drill — army training
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. cold — not warm
  11. fall — to drop
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. march — the month
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. march — the month
  16. drill — the tool
  17. cold — an illness
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. current — happening now
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — the season

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