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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. court — of a king
  3. court — of law
  4. race — humankind
  5. chest — a box
  6. board — a committee
  7. cold — an illness
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. mark — a trace
  11. board — to get on
  12. court — for sport
  13. clip — a video
  14. race — the arms race
  15. cold — not warm
  16. clip — for paper
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. clip — to cut
  20. mark — a grade
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. chest — of your body
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. race — a contest

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