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 120 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. court — of a king
  3. degree — from a university
  4. pass — a permit
  5. season — in sport
  6. hand — help
  7. hand — in cards
  8. degree — temperature
  9. stand — to bear
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. land — a country
  14. present — there
  15. present — a gift
  16. court — of law
  17. land — ground
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. present — the time now
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. court — for sport
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. land — to come down
  24. degree — an amount

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