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 120 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. kid — child
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. wind — moving air
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — happy
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. can — a tin
  10. wind — moving air
  11. court — of law
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. court — of a king
  14. can — to be able to
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. court — for sport

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