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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. ground — a position
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. chair — a leader
  5. ground — the earth
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. chip — for betting
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. chip — to eat
  11. date — the fruit
  12. court — for sport
  13. pitch — completely
  14. ground — crushed
  15. court — of a king
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. court — of law
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. press — a publisher
  20. bark — to shout
  21. press — to push
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. press — newspapers
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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