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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. mate — a partner
  4. court — for sport
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ground — the earth
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. mate — a friend
  9. court — of law
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. cue — a hint
  15. court — of a king
  16. cue — for pool
  17. ground — a position
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. kid — child
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. cue — a signal
  22. chair — a leader
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. mate — to breed

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