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: land · last · can · cell · game · content · bark · rash

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  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. rash — on the skin
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. rash — a series
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. game — wild animals
  6. land — a country
  7. last — to go on
  8. can — a tin
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. can — to be able to
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. land — to come down
  14. content — the amount
  15. last — final
  16. game — a match
  17. rash — hasty
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bark — to shout
  20. can — a tin
  21. content — happy
  22. cell — in biology
  23. land — ground
  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