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: track · key · clip · temple · vault · pit · cold · cell

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. key — for a lock
  3. vault — a safe
  4. cell — a phone
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. clip — to cut
  7. track — to keep track
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. key — in music
  11. cell — in biology
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. track — a song
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pit — in a race
  21. clip — a video
  22. track — a path
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. clip — for paper

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