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: club · wax · cell · court · mine · can · band · pit

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. club — for golf
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. pit — a hole
  6. band — a ring
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. wax — to grow
  9. court — for sport
  10. pit — in a race
  11. can — to be able to
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. court — of a king
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. band — a music group
  16. cell — in biology
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. mine — for digging
  19. cell — a phone
  20. club — for dancing
  21. can — a tin
  22. club — a group
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. can — a tin

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