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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. ground — crushed
  3. rest — what's left
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. ground — a position
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. squash — the sport
  9. rest — a break
  10. clip — for paper
  11. sharp — clever
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. squash — to crush
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. clip — to cut
  18. rest — what's left
  19. clip — a video
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. court — for sport

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