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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. court — of a king
  7. court — for sport
  8. deal — to handle
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. march — the month
  11. bat — the animal
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. march — the month
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. march — music
  17. court — of law
  18. wake — a trail

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