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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. bat — the animal
  3. ball — a dance
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a music group
  7. ball — a great time
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. perch — the fish
  12. sharp — clever
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. ball — a round shape

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