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 water is too ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cue — a signal
  3. press — newspapers
  4. march — the month
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. cold — an illness
  7. court — for sport
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. cell — a phone
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. cue — for pool
  12. march — the month
  13. cue — a hint
  14. court — of a king
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cell — in biology
  17. season — in sport
  18. deal — to handle
  19. march — music
  20. press — a publisher
  21. court — of law
  22. press — to push
  23. season — of the year
  24. cold — the Cold War

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