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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. club — for golf
  4. court — of a king
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. net — for catching
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. clip — for paper
  10. squash — to crush
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. clip — a video
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. club — for dancing
  15. clip — to cut
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. net — in sport
  18. court — for sport
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — not warm
  21. net — after costs
  22. court — of law
  23. squash — the sport
  24. club — a group

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