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: pitch · game · current · mine · craft · spring · cold · bound

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. cold — not warm
  3. current — electric
  4. bound — obliged
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bound — tied together
  8. current — happening now
  9. bound — certain
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. game — wild animals
  13. craft — boats
  14. craft — a skill
  15. pitch — completely
  16. cold — an illness
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. game — a match
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. spring — of water
  22. current — of water
  23. spring — a coil
  24. spring — the season

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