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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · mine · hand · mark · cold · drill

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. mark — a grade
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mine — for digging
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. drill — army training
  9. hand — in cards
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. cold — an illness
  13. kick — in football
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. hand — help
  17. drill — the tool
  18. cold — not warm

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