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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — finally
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. wound — an injury
  6. band — a music group
  7. squash — the sport
  8. press — a publisher
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. squash — to crush
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. last — final
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. press — newspapers
  18. band — a ring
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. press — to push
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. wind — moving air

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