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: scale · band · hand · cell · firm · ball · snap · last

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. ball — a great time
  6. cell — in biology
  7. last — finally
  8. cell — a phone
  9. firm — a company
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. hand — in cards
  12. last — final
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. scale — size or range
  16. firm — decided
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. ball — a dance
  19. band — a ring
  20. band — a music group
  21. scale — in music
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. last — to go on
  24. snap — to click

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