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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. file — a line of people
  3. bear — the animal
  4. court — for sport
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. file — a document
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. bear — the animal
  14. row — a line
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. kid — to tease
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. court — of a king
  20. snap — to click
  21. row — to paddle
  22. court — of law
  23. kid — child
  24. file — a tool

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