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 120 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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. mate — to breed
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. wind — moving air
  5. last — final
  6. mate — a partner
  7. fine — all right
  8. wind — moving air
  9. last — finally
  10. scale — size or range
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. last — to go on
  14. net — after costs
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. pop — to visit
  18. scale — in music
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — a phone
  21. net — in sport
  22. mate — a friend
  23. fine — high quality
  24. net — for catching

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