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: kid · last · game · present · squash · stock · spell · staff

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  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. spell — magic
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. spell — letters
  4. stock — goods
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. present — the time now
  8. game — a match
  9. staff — a stick
  10. kid — child
  11. present — a gift
  12. present — there
  13. last — to go on
  14. squash — to crush
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. stock — shares
  17. kid — to tease
  18. staff — employees
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. spell — a short time
  21. last — final
  22. staff — employees
  23. game — wild animals
  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