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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. rash — hasty
  3. spring — a coil
  4. court — of a king
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. court — for sport
  8. spring — the season
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. suit — in cards
  11. spring — of water
  12. suit — clothes
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. season — in sport
  17. perch — the fish
  18. season — of the year
  19. roll — a cake
  20. roll — a list
  21. court — of law
  22. suit — to fit
  23. rash — a series
  24. perch — for a bird

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