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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. bear — the animal
  5. cold — an illness
  6. rest — a break
  7. file — a tool
  8. cold — not warm
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bound — certain
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. row — a line
  15. bound — tied together
  16. rest — what's left
  17. file — a document
  18. last — to go on
  19. bound — obliged
  20. row — to paddle
  21. bear — the animal
  22. last — final
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. file — a line of people

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