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: saw · track · root · field · band · mouse · land · capital

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. track — a path
  3. track — to keep track
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. field — for sport
  6. land — ground
  7. saw — the tool
  8. land — a country
  9. land — to come down
  10. saw — the tool
  11. field — farmland
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. field — a subject
  14. track — a song
  15. capital — a city
  16. root — the cause
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. root — of a word
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. band — a music group
  23. root — of a plant
  24. mouse — the animal

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