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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. spell — magic
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. row — to paddle
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. spell — letters
  9. track — a path
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. season — of the year
  13. spell — a short time
  14. track — a song
  15. band — a music group
  16. court — of a king
  17. row — a line
  18. track — to keep track
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. season — in sport
  21. band — a ring
  22. court — of law
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. court — for sport

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