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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. bound — tied together
  3. club — for dancing
  4. mate — to breed
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. mate — a friend
  7. land — to come down
  8. mate — a partner
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. wax — to grow
  13. club — for golf
  14. band — a music group
  15. land — a country
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. club — a group
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bound — obliged
  20. band — a ring
  21. mine — for digging
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bound — certain
  24. land — ground

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