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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. rush — hurry
  6. last — finally
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. scale — in music
  10. land — to come down
  11. root — of a plant
  12. present — the time now
  13. kick — in football
  14. last — to go on
  15. land — a country
  16. present — there
  17. root — the cause
  18. present — a gift
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. scale — size or range
  22. root — of a word
  23. snap — to click
  24. land — ground

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