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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. net — after costs
  3. cap — of ice
  4. bulb — for light
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. cap — a lid
  8. saw — the tool
  9. band — a music group
  10. net — in sport
  11. row — a line
  12. wound — an injury
  13. cap — a hat
  14. band — a ring
  15. bulb — for light
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wound — an injury
  19. row — to paddle
  20. march — the month
  21. net — for catching
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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