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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. hand — in cards
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. band — a ring
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. club — for golf
  7. tear — from crying
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. last — to go on
  10. band — a music group
  11. last — final
  12. hand — help
  13. tear — from crying
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. tear — to rip
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. march — the month
  19. march — music
  20. lie — to recline
  21. club — a group
  22. march — the month
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. club — for dancing

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