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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. content — happy
  3. net — in sport
  4. rest — what's left
  5. key — for a lock
  6. key — in music
  7. cold — not warm
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. content — the amount
  10. cold — an illness
  11. key — the most important part
  12. stock — shares
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a hat
  15. court — of law
  16. court — for sport
  17. net — after costs
  18. rest — a break
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. court — of a king
  21. net — for catching
  22. stock — goods
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. rest — what's left

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