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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. last — final
  4. last — to go on
  5. staff — a stick
  6. staff — employees
  7. last — finally
  8. kid — child
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. face — to confront
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. march — the month
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. kid — to tease
  15. rush — hurry
  16. march — the month
  17. hand — help
  18. staff — employees
  19. face — part of the head
  20. march — music
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. hand — in cards
  24. sharp — clever

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