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: spring · tear · vault · shower · cold · key · date · band

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. shower — to wash
  3. band — a ring
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. tear — from crying
  6. band — a music group
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. shower — rain
  9. tear — to rip
  10. key — in music
  11. key — the most important part
  12. cold — an illness
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — the season
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. date — the fruit
  18. cold — not warm
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. tear — from crying
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. key — for a lock

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