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: spell · cabinet · date · perch · march · rule · land · lean

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. spell — letters
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. date — the fruit
  5. march — the month
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. rule — government
  8. rule — a law
  9. march — music
  10. land — ground
  11. spell — magic
  12. perch — the fish
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. land — to come down
  15. march — the month
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. spell — a short time
  18. land — a country
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. lean — thin
  24. date — on the calendar

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