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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. last — to go on
  3. season — of the year
  4. rock — music
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. stock — shares
  7. content — the amount
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. content — happy
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. kick — in football
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. season — in sport
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. rock — a stone
  18. row — to paddle
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. row — a line
  22. last — finally
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. last — final

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