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 116 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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. net — in sport
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. cell — a phone
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. suit — clothes
  9. net — after costs
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. branch — a division
  13. suit — to fit
  14. band — a ring
  15. bat — the animal
  16. net — for catching
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. cell — in biology
  20. band — a music group
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. game — a match
  23. game — wild animals
  24. bat — in an idiom

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