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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. track — to keep track
  3. plane — a tool
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. track — a song
  7. dip — to sink
  8. fall — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. game — wild animals
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stock — goods
  13. last — to go on
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. fall — to drop
  16. track — a path
  17. shower — to wash
  18. last — finally
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. stock — shares
  23. shower — rain
  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