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: nail · last · cold · track · cell · bore · straw · wake

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. track — a song
  3. cold — an illness
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. cell — in biology
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bore — to tire
  8. bore — to drill
  9. last — final
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. wake — a trail
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cell — a phone
  14. last — to go on
  15. track — a path
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. last — finally
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. cold — not warm
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. track — to keep track

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