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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. charge — a price
  3. net — after costs
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. net — for catching
  6. net — in sport
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. cold — not warm
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — size or range
  14. cold — an illness
  15. charge — electricity
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. charge — in control
  18. cold — the Cold War

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