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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. march — music
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. march — the month
  6. mark — a trace
  7. key — the most important part
  8. branch — a division
  9. pass — a permit
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. row — to paddle
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bass — low music
  14. row — a line
  15. bass — the fish
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. key — for a lock
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. march — the month
  23. key — in music
  24. mark — a grade

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