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 120 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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — ground
  6. tear — from crying
  7. present — there
  8. net — after costs
  9. bore — to drill
  10. present — a gift
  11. chip — for betting
  12. band — a music group
  13. bore — to tire
  14. chip — to eat
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. tear — from crying
  18. land — a country
  19. net — in sport
  20. present — the time now
  21. net — for catching
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. tear — to rip

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