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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. chair — a leader
  3. ground — a position
  4. game — a match
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. court — of a king
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. game — wild animals
  15. file — a document
  16. bore — to tire
  17. file — a line of people
  18. lie — to recline
  19. ground — crushed
  20. court — of law
  21. ground — the earth
  22. bore — to drill
  23. court — for sport
  24. chair — to sit on

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