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: hand · mate · land · can · ball · chest · mine · mug

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. land — a country
  3. land — ground
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. can — to be able to
  6. mug — to rob
  7. ball — a dance
  8. mate — to breed
  9. mine — for digging
  10. can — a tin
  11. mug — a face
  12. chest — a box
  13. chest — of your body
  14. can — a tin
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. chest — of your body
  17. mug — a cup
  18. hand — in cards
  19. land — to come down
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. mate — a friend
  22. hand — help
  23. ball — a great time
  24. ball — a round shape

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