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 116 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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. last — to go on
  4. object — a thing
  5. rash — hasty
  6. game — a match
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. bat — the animal
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. game — wild animals
  11. court — of a king
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. last — final
  14. last — finally
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. branch — a division
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. rash — a series
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. object — to protest
  22. object — an aim
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. court — of law

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