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 116 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: march · rash · last · chair · snap · drill · tear · swing

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. drill — army training
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. chair — a leader
  5. swing — to play on
  6. tear — from crying
  7. rash — hasty
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — music
  10. drill — a practice
  11. last — to go on
  12. rash — a series
  13. drill — the tool
  14. tear — to rip
  15. march — music
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. march — the month
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. tear — from crying
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. last — finally
  22. snap — to click
  23. last — final
  24. march — the month

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