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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. wake — a trail
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. cold — not warm
  9. perch — the fish
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — humankind
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. court — of a king
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. pit — a hole
  20. court — of law
  21. pit — in a race
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. court — for sport

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