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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. game — wild animals
  4. court — for sport
  5. fall — to drop
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. foot — a measure
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. court — of a king
  12. toast — bread
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. shower — to wash
  15. cold — not warm
  16. fall — the season
  17. game — a match
  18. court — of law
  19. shower — rain
  20. fall — to drop
  21. pass — a permit
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. cold — an illness
  24. foot — the bottom

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