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: fan · season · pop · foot · key · mine · game · net

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. foot — a measure
  3. key — for a lock
  4. game — a match
  5. key — in music
  6. pop — music
  7. net — after costs
  8. net — in sport
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. net — for catching
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. pop — to visit
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. key — the most important part
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. season — of the year
  19. game — wild animals
  20. mine — for digging
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. pop — soda
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

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