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: mate · capital · band · calf · bank · clip · cabinet · field

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. clip — a video
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. bank — for money
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. field — for sport
  7. clip — for paper
  8. mate — a friend
  9. field — farmland
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. clip — to cut
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. bank — for money
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. capital — money
  17. mate — a partner
  18. capital — a city
  19. band — a music group
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. bank — of a river
  22. mate — to breed
  23. field — a subject
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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