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: mate · land · present · cap · bulb · game · pop · tear

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. game — a match
  4. present — there
  5. bulb — for light
  6. cap — of ice
  7. bulb — for light
  8. mate — a friend
  9. mate — to breed
  10. land — to come down
  11. pop — soda
  12. land — ground
  13. cap — a lid
  14. tear — from crying
  15. pop — music
  16. cap — a hat
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. pop — to visit
  19. present — the time now
  20. present — a gift
  21. tear — to rip
  22. land — a country
  23. tear — from crying
  24. game — wild animals

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