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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. file — a document
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. march — the month
  9. court — of law
  10. march — music
  11. pass — a permit
  12. net — for catching
  13. court — of a king
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. roll — a cake
  16. game — a match
  17. court — for sport
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. net — in sport
  20. file — a line of people
  21. kick — in football
  22. march — the month
  23. net — after costs
  24. roll — a list

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