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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. staff — employees
  3. wound — an injury
  4. court — of law
  5. wound — an injury
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. ground — the earth
  9. court — for sport
  10. ground — a position
  11. rash — a series
  12. toast — bread
  13. court — of a king
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. ground — crushed
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. staff — employees
  19. staff — a stick
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. squash — to crush
  22. squash — the sport
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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