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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. drill — the tool
  3. prune — to trim
  4. last — final
  5. last — finally
  6. snap — to click
  7. drill — army training
  8. band — a music group
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. drill — a practice
  12. band — a ring
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. hand — in cards
  15. rash — a series
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a line of people
  18. prune — to trim
  19. last — to go on
  20. hand — help
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. rash — hasty
  24. band — a rubber band

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