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 116 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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. squash — the sport
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. plane — a tool
  7. net — for catching
  8. ground — a position
  9. land — ground
  10. rule — government
  11. land — a country
  12. ground — the earth
  13. net — in sport
  14. ground — crushed
  15. spring — a coil
  16. rule — a law
  17. land — to come down
  18. game — a match
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. spring — of water
  21. game — wild animals
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. squash — to crush
  24. net — after costs

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