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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. chest — of your body
  4. court — of law
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. court — of a king
  7. foot — a measure
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. spring — the season
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. scale — size or range
  13. scale — in music
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. plane — a tool
  18. wound — an injury
  19. court — for sport
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. chest — of your body
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chest — a box
  24. spring — of water

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