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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. bear — the animal
  3. last — to go on
  4. swing — music
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. snap — to click
  8. swing — to play on
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. bear — the animal
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. cold — not warm
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. game — wild animals
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. swing — in golf
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. last — finally
  23. cold — an illness
  24. game — a match

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