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 120 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. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of a king
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. drill — a practice
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. ball — a dance
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. drill — the tool
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. mine — for digging
  12. band — a ring
  13. content — happy
  14. ball — a great time
  15. drill — army training
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bound — tied together
  18. court — of law
  19. content — the amount
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. band — a music group
  23. bound — certain
  24. bound — obliged

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