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 · drill · rule · chest · kid · spring · squash · tear

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. drill — the tool
  3. drill — a practice
  4. tear — from crying
  5. squash — the sport
  6. chest — a box
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. chest — of your body
  9. spring — of water
  10. kid — child
  11. track — to keep track
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. drill — army training
  15. track — a song
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. rule — government
  18. spring — a coil
  19. kid — to tease
  20. squash — to crush
  21. chest — of your body
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. spring — the season
  24. rule — a law

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