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: band · cap · march · bulb · pitch · capital · game · content

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. pitch — completely
  3. game — a match
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. band — a ring
  6. cap — a lid
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. cap — a hat
  9. content — happy
  10. band — a music group
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. march — music
  15. cap — of ice
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. content — the amount
  18. capital — money
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — for light
  21. game — wild animals
  22. march — the month
  23. march — the month
  24. capital — a city

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