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 124 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. stock — shares
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. ball — a great time
  5. bass — low music
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. mine — for digging
  11. ball — a dance
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. stock — goods
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. spring — the season
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. plane — a tool
  20. season — of the year
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. bass — the fish
  23. pitch — completely
  24. plane — in geometry

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