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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. board — to get on
  4. board — a committee
  5. spring — of water
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. craft — a skill
  8. race — a contest
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. mine — for digging
  11. spring — the season
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — humankind
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. craft — boats
  17. band — a music group
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. spring — a coil
  21. band — a ring
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bowl — to roll

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