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 116 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: rule · swing · fall · band · bass · cold · coach · net

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — the fish
  3. band — a music group
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. swing — to play on
  6. net — for catching
  7. net — after costs
  8. fall — to drop
  9. rule — a law
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. bass — low music
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. swing — in golf
  16. swing — music
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. band — a ring
  19. fall — the season
  20. net — in sport
  21. cold — not warm
  22. rule — government
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. fall — to drop

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