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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. scale — size or range
  3. present — the time now
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. court — for sport
  6. staff — employees
  7. staff — a stick
  8. court — of law
  9. prune — to trim
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. band — a ring
  14. row — a line
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. scale — in music
  17. present — a gift
  18. row — to paddle
  19. court — of a king
  20. staff — employees
  21. present — there
  22. band — a music group
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. row — a quarrel

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