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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. rest — a break
  3. present — there
  4. last — final
  5. rest — what's left
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. mine — for digging
  8. craft — a skill
  9. craft — boats
  10. present — the time now
  11. last — finally
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. bore — to drill
  17. clip — for paper
  18. present — a gift
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. clip — a video
  21. bore — to tire
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. clip — to cut
  24. last — to go on

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