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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mate — a partner
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. mate — a friend
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. current — happening now
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. game — a match
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. current — of water
  15. court — of law
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. mate — to breed
  18. current — electric
  19. bat — the animal
  20. court — for sport
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. court — of a king

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