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: land · game · season · straw · mine · bear · kid · fine

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — of the year
  6. bear — the animal
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. bear — the animal
  9. game — a match
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. land — a country
  13. kid — to tease
  14. game — wild animals
  15. land — to come down
  16. fine — all right
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. fine — high quality
  21. kid — child
  22. land — ground
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. straw — a straw man

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