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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. court — of law
  5. tear — from crying
  6. stock — goods
  7. prune — to trim
  8. stock — shares
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. tear — from crying
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. court — for sport
  16. bear — the animal
  17. prune — to trim
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. court — of a king
  20. tear — to rip
  21. bear — the animal
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. kid — to tease

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