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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — for digging
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. rest — what's left
  5. last — final
  6. saw — the tool
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — a break
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. club — for golf
  12. press — a publisher
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. saw — the tool
  15. club — a group
  16. press — newspapers
  17. foot — a measure
  18. last — finally
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. club — for dancing
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. last — to go on
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. press — to push

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