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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. tear — to rip
  3. file — a document
  4. rush — hurry
  5. file — a line of people
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. march — the month
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. march — the month
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. file — a tool
  13. rock — a stone
  14. object — a thing
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. march — music
  18. tear — from crying
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. sharp — clever
  21. tear — from crying
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. object — an aim
  24. object — to protest

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