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: fine · bore · last · shower · cap · lie · spell · content

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. fine — all right
  4. last — to go on
  5. cap — a hat
  6. spell — letters
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bore — to tire
  9. cap — a lid
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. fine — high quality
  12. bore — to drill
  13. content — happy
  14. cap — of ice
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. shower — to wash
  17. shower — rain
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. lie — to recline
  20. content — the amount
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. spell — magic
  23. last — finally
  24. spell — a short time

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