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: swing · cap · land · file · spring · bank · wound · mate

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. swing — to play on
  3. bank — for money
  4. mate — to breed
  5. land — ground
  6. bank — for money
  7. mate — a friend
  8. spring — a coil
  9. file — a tool
  10. cap — of ice
  11. land — to come down
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. land — a country
  14. swing — in golf
  15. file — a document
  16. bank — of a river
  17. file — a line of people
  18. swing — music
  19. spring — of water
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wound — an injury
  22. spring — the season
  23. wound — an injury
  24. mate — a partner

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