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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. spring — of water
  4. march — music
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. spring — a coil
  7. band — a music group
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. band — a ring
  12. march — the month
  13. object — an aim
  14. content — happy
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. object — a thing
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. content — the amount
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. object — to protest
  22. spring — the season
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. march — the month

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