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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. spell — a short time
  3. chip — for betting
  4. rock — music
  5. mine — for digging
  6. club — a group
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. club — for golf
  10. spell — magic
  11. club — for dancing
  12. capital — a city
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. last — to go on
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. chip — to eat
  18. cold — not warm
  19. capital — money
  20. rock — a stone
  21. spell — letters
  22. last — final
  23. cold — an illness
  24. capital — a big letter

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