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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. can — to be able to
  3. mine — for digging
  4. bass — the fish
  5. can — a tin
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. band — a music group
  8. chair — a leader
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. content — the amount
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — wild animals
  19. can — a tin
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bass — low music
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. game — a match
  24. content — happy

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