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: mate · chair · last · bark · dip · pass · mine · rule

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. mate — a partner
  3. last — to go on
  4. mate — a friend
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. dip — to sink
  10. last — final
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. mine — for digging
  14. pass — a permit
  15. last — finally
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mate — to breed
  18. rule — a law
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. chair — a leader
  21. rule — government
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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