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: row · mine · chest · cabinet · hide · band · field · mate

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. field — a subject
  4. band — a ring
  5. field — for sport
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. chest — a box
  9. mate — to breed
  10. mate — a partner
  11. mine — for digging
  12. row — a line
  13. chest — of your body
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. mate — a friend
  17. chest — of your body
  18. field — farmland
  19. row — to paddle
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. band — a music group
  24. hide — animal skin

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