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

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. file — a tool
  3. tear — from crying
  4. game — wild animals
  5. file — a document
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of law
  8. tear — from crying
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — a match
  11. tear — to rip
  12. stock — shares
  13. file — a line of people
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. stock — goods

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