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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. current — of water
  3. mark — a grade
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. last — final
  6. last — finally
  7. mine — for digging
  8. band — a music group
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. band — a ring
  11. content — the amount
  12. mark — a trace
  13. current — electric
  14. game — a match
  15. content — happy
  16. pitch — completely
  17. last — to go on
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. game — wild animals
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. current — happening now
  24. band — a rubber band

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