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: object · present · land · band · spring · row · spell · pound

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. band — a ring
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — the time now
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. present — there
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. spell — letters
  10. row — a line
  11. spring — the season
  12. object — to protest
  13. spell — magic
  14. object — a thing
  15. spell — a short time
  16. band — a music group
  17. land — a country
  18. spring — a coil
  19. land — ground
  20. pound — a weight
  21. object — an aim
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. spring — of water
  24. row — to paddle

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