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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. content — happy
  3. spring — a coil
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. spring — the season
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. content — the amount
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. toast — bread
  11. dip — to sink
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. can — a tin
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. spring — of water
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — to be able to
  20. pitch — completely
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. game — a match
  24. game — wild animals

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