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 116 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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. court — for sport
  4. mug — to rob
  5. press — to push
  6. mug — a cup
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. craft — a skill
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. craft — boats
  12. hand — in cards
  13. court — of a king
  14. race — humankind
  15. court — of law
  16. race — the arms race
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. mug — a face
  19. hand — help
  20. press — newspapers
  21. pitch — completely
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. press — a publisher
  24. hand — part of the body

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