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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. degree — an amount
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. degree — from a university
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. mine — for digging
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. pop — music
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. court — for sport
  17. court — of a king
  18. can — to be able to
  19. pop — soda
  20. degree — temperature
  21. pop — to visit
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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