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 116 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. last — final
  3. cell — in biology
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. row — a line
  6. cell — a phone
  7. last — to go on
  8. pop — to visit
  9. bound — certain
  10. row — to paddle
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bound — tied together
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. tear — from crying
  16. last — finally
  17. pop — soda
  18. pop — music
  19. game — wild animals
  20. mark — a grade
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. mark — a trace
  23. tear — to rip
  24. game — a match

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