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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a music group
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. court — of a king
  5. court — for sport
  6. scale — in music
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. charge — electricity
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. court — of law
  13. charge — in control
  14. game — wild animals
  15. scale — size or range
  16. game — a match
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. charge — a price
  19. branch — a division
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. branch — of a tree

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