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: fork · drill · race · swing · wake · land · ruler · ball

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. land — a country
  3. wake — a trail
  4. land — to come down
  5. fork — in a road
  6. swing — to play on
  7. race — a contest
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. drill — the tool
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. drill — army training
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. drill — a practice
  15. land — ground
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ball — a great time
  18. ball — a dance
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. race — humankind
  21. swing — music
  22. swing — in golf
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. race — the arms race

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