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: leaves · mine · cold · pit · last · game · craft · chip

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. craft — boats
  3. game — a match
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. cold — not warm
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. craft — a skill
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. last — final
  10. chip — to eat
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. cold — an illness
  14. pit — in a race
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. mine — for digging
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. pit — a hole
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — finally
  22. chip — for betting
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. game — a kind of play

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