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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. rest — a break
  3. saw — the tool
  4. march — the month
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of law
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. chest — of your body
  9. drill — the tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. drill — army training
  12. chest — a box
  13. rest — what's left
  14. march — the month
  15. bound — certain
  16. rest — what's left
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — for digging
  19. chest — of your body
  20. court — of a king
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. bound — tied together
  23. drill — a practice
  24. march — music

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