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: march · band · pop · court · net · plane · field · can

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. court — of law
  3. can — a tin
  4. field — a subject
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. net — after costs
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. march — the month
  9. court — for sport
  10. field — farmland
  11. band — a ring
  12. pop — music
  13. court — of a king
  14. can — to be able to
  15. net — for catching
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. field — for sport
  18. march — the month
  19. band — a music group
  20. march — music
  21. net — in sport
  22. plane — a tool
  23. pop — soda
  24. pop — to visit

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