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: field · band · race · bound · fork · land · rule · tear

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. tear — from crying
  3. field — a subject
  4. land — to come down
  5. race — the arms race
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. rule — government
  8. band — a music group
  9. bound — tied together
  10. field — for sport
  11. land — ground
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. fork — in a road
  14. field — farmland
  15. band — a ring
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bound — obliged
  20. rule — a law
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. race — a contest
  23. bound — certain
  24. race — humankind

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