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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. hand — in cards
  4. band — a music group
  5. track — a song
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. spring — a coil
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of law
  11. court — of a king
  12. band — a ring
  13. squash — the sport
  14. squash — to crush
  15. track — to keep track
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. deal — to handle
  18. spring — the season
  19. track — a path
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. hand — help
  22. mate — to breed
  23. mate — a friend
  24. spring — of water

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