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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. mine — for digging
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bound — obliged
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. spring — a coil
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. club — for golf
  9. ball — a dance
  10. spring — of water
  11. cue — for pool
  12. cue — a signal
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. bound — tied together
  15. club — for dancing
  16. shower — to wash
  17. perch — the fish
  18. bound — certain
  19. spring — the season
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. club — a group
  23. shower — rain
  24. cue — a hint

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