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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. sharp — clever
  8. court — of law
  9. ball — a great time
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. file — a document
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. file — a tool
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. press — a publisher
  17. court — for sport
  18. file — a line of people
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. court — of a king
  21. press — to push
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. hand — help
  24. press — newspapers

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