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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: content · plane · mine · scale · ball · swing

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. ball — a dance
  3. content — the amount
  4. plane — a tool
  5. swing — in golf
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. scale — in music
  8. mine — for digging
  9. swing — music
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. scale — size or range
  12. ball — a great time
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — happy
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. swing — to play on
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. ball — a round shape

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