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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. tear — to rip
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. tear — from crying
  5. race — humankind
  6. bound — tied together
  7. last — to go on
  8. tear — from crying
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. pit — a hole
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. vault — a safe
  13. spring — a coil
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. bound — obliged
  17. pit — in a race
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. last — final
  20. bound — certain
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — the season
  23. race — the arms race
  24. race — a contest

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