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 124 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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. toast — bread
  3. date — the fruit
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. content — happy
  7. board — to get on
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. cold — not warm
  10. last — final
  11. board — a committee
  12. last — to go on
  13. content — the amount
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. cold — an illness
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. dip — to sink
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. last — finally

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