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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. cold — an illness
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. court — of law
  7. prune — to trim
  8. court — for sport
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. chip — for betting
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. sharp — clever
  14. band — a ring
  15. chip — to eat
  16. court — of a king
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. prune — to trim
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. cold — not warm
  23. band — a music group
  24. bowl — to roll

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