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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. fall — the season
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. rash — hasty
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. kick — in football
  7. court — for sport
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. wake — a trail
  13. court — of law
  14. perch — the fish
  15. shower — rain
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. fall — to drop
  19. court — of a king
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. fall — to drop
  22. shower — to wash
  23. rash — a series
  24. kick — with a leg

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