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: fall · pit · patient · ground · march · clip · game · toast

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. ground — the earth
  3. pit — a hole
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. toast — bread
  6. fall — to drop
  7. march — the month
  8. fall — the season
  9. clip — for paper
  10. ground — crushed
  11. ground — a position
  12. march — the month
  13. fall — to drop
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. clip — to cut
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. clip — a video
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. pit — in a race
  23. game — a match
  24. game — wild animals

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