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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. ground — the earth
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. chest — a box
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. track — a song
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. chest — of your body
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. rush — hurry
  12. court — of law
  13. track — a path
  14. ground — crushed
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. track — to keep track
  18. deal — to handle
  19. ground — a position
  20. kick — in football
  21. chest — of your body
  22. court — of a king
  23. mine — for digging
  24. kick — with a leg

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