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: staff · straw · drill · march · row · spell · lean · net

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. staff — employees
  3. march — the month
  4. net — in sport
  5. row — to paddle
  6. spell — magic
  7. spell — letters
  8. lean — thin
  9. march — the month
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — the tool
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. lean — to bend
  14. staff — employees
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. row — a line
  17. spell — a short time
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. net — after costs
  21. staff — a stick
  22. net — for catching
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. march — music

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