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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. tear — from crying
  3. court — for sport
  4. court — of law
  5. spring — a coil
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. ground — the earth
  8. spring — of water
  9. cap — of ice
  10. ground — crushed
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. court — of a king
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. tear — from crying
  17. spring — the season
  18. cap — a lid
  19. tear — to rip
  20. cap — a hat
  21. ground — a position
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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