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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. court — for sport
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. sharp — clever
  5. bank — for money
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. file — a tool
  8. file — a document
  9. court — of law
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. season — in sport
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. court — of a king
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bank — for money
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. season — of the year
  21. file — a line of people
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bank — of a river
  24. straw — dry grass

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