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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. bass — low music
  4. key — the most important part
  5. spell — letters
  6. key — for a lock
  7. field — a subject
  8. spell — magic
  9. mine — for digging
  10. field — for sport
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. track — a song
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. bound — tied together
  15. track — a path
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. bound — obliged
  18. bound — certain
  19. spell — a short time
  20. field — farmland
  21. key — in music
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. track — to keep track
  24. bass — the fish

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