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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. scale — in music
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. cap — of ice
  6. plane — a tool
  7. band — a ring
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. stock — shares
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. cap — a lid
  13. scale — size or range
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. kid — to tease
  17. shower — to wash
  18. kid — child
  19. shower — rain
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. cap — a hat
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. stock — goods

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