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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. chest — a box
  3. content — happy
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. season — in sport
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. content — the amount
  8. bass — low music
  9. chest — of your body
  10. season — of the year
  11. game — wild animals
  12. sharp — clever
  13. game — a match
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bound — obliged
  17. chest — of your body
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. bound — certain

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