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: stock · last · bank · bat · swing · key · row · march

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. key — in music
  4. bank — of a river
  5. swing — music
  6. swing — to play on
  7. stock — shares
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. march — the month
  12. key — the most important part
  13. stock — goods
  14. last — finally
  15. swing — in golf
  16. key — for a lock
  17. march — the month
  18. row — to paddle
  19. last — to go on
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bank — for money
  22. row — a line
  23. march — music
  24. bank — for money

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