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: season · last · chair · mug · race · ground · rock · clip

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. season — in sport
  3. last — finally
  4. last — to go on
  5. season — of the year
  6. ground — the earth
  7. race — humankind
  8. clip — to cut
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. ground — a position
  11. race — the arms race
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. mug — a cup
  14. rock — music
  15. race — a contest
  16. ground — crushed
  17. clip — a video
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. chair — a leader
  21. last — final
  22. rock — a stone
  23. clip — for paper
  24. mug — to rob

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