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

Word bank: chair · rash · temple · net · last · hide · spring · bat

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. last — finally
  5. chair — a leader
  6. bat — the animal
  7. spring — of water
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — for catching
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. last — final
  12. rash — a series
  13. spring — the season
  14. last — to go on
  15. net — after costs
  16. rash — hasty
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. spring — a coil
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. rash — on the skin

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