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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. chest — of your body
  4. face — to point toward
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. band — a music group
  7. court — for sport
  8. track — a song
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. root — of a plant
  11. root — the cause
  12. court — of law
  13. root — of a word
  14. track — a path
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — to trim
  17. face — to confront
  18. chest — of your body
  19. face — part of the head
  20. court — of a king
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. chest — a box
  23. track — to keep track
  24. mouse — the animal

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