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: field · band · straw · race · spell · object · net · stock

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. band — a ring
  5. field — farmland
  6. stock — goods
  7. object — an aim
  8. object — to protest
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. net — for catching
  12. object — a thing
  13. spell — a short time
  14. field — a subject
  15. race — a contest
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. spell — magic
  18. net — in sport
  19. race — the arms race
  20. band — a music group
  21. stock — shares
  22. race — humankind
  23. spell — letters
  24. field — for sport

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