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 120 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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. land — ground
  3. game — wild animals
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. spring — a coil
  7. squash — to crush
  8. squash — the sport
  9. club — for golf
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. board — to get on
  12. game — a match
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. spring — of water
  15. spring — the season
  16. club — for dancing
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — a country

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