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: season · band · spring · straw · chip · arm · chest · row

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. spring — of water
  3. band — a ring
  4. chest — a box
  5. spring — a coil
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. row — a line
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. chest — of your body
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. row — to paddle
  13. spring — the season
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chip — to eat
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. chip — for betting
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. season — of the year

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