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

Word bank: face · march · jam · board · bear · content · mine · band

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. face — to point toward
  3. face — to confront
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. march — the month
  6. band — a music group
  7. bear — the animal
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. board — a committee
  10. content — the amount
  11. content — happy
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. board — to get on
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. march — music
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. band — a ring
  22. face — part of the head
  23. bear — the animal
  24. march — the month

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