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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. chip — to eat
  3. content — happy
  4. chip — for betting
  5. cold — an illness
  6. march — the month
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. content — the amount
  11. bound — obliged
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. bulb — for light
  16. cold — not warm
  17. march — the month
  18. bound — certain
  19. bulb — for light
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bound — tied together
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. march — music

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