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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. club — for golf
  3. ball — a dance
  4. file — a tool
  5. file — a document
  6. shower — rain
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. file — a line of people
  9. ball — a great time
  10. field — farmland
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a music group
  13. last — final
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. club — for dancing
  16. shower — to wash
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. field — for sport
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. last — to go on
  22. band — a ring
  23. last — finally
  24. field — a subject

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