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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. court — of a king
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — a short time
  5. stem — to come from
  6. file — a tool
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. chest — a box
  9. toast — bread
  10. chest — of your body
  11. ground — the earth
  12. chest — of your body
  13. court — for sport
  14. court — of law
  15. spell — letters
  16. ground — a position
  17. season — in sport
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a document
  23. season — of the year
  24. ground — crushed

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