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: craft · band · mine · spell · press · chip · cold · cap

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. spell — letters
  3. chip — for betting
  4. craft — boats
  5. cold — an illness
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. press — to push
  8. spell — magic
  9. cap — a lid
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cap — a hat
  12. mine — for digging
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. spell — a short time
  15. band — a music group
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. press — newspapers
  19. band — a ring
  20. chip — to eat
  21. cold — not warm
  22. craft — a skill
  23. press — a publisher
  24. cold — the Cold War

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