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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. last — to go on
  3. last — final
  4. row — to paddle
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. drill — a practice
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — to recline
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. roll — a cake
  11. roll — a list
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. row — a line
  15. last — finally
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. drill — the tool
  18. content — happy
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. drill — army training
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. content — the amount
  24. content — videos and posts

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