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 120 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. last — to go on
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bore — to tire
  5. last — final
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. capital — a city
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. season — of the year
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. capital — money
  15. face — to confront
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. last — finally
  19. dip — to sink
  20. face — to point toward
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. face — part of the head
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. season — in sport

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