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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. land — to come down
  3. mate — a partner
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. key — in music
  7. wound — an injury
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. court — for sport
  11. stock — goods
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. court — of law
  14. land — ground
  15. game — wild animals
  16. stock — shares
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. land — a country
  19. game — a match
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a friend
  22. key — the most important part
  23. wound — an injury
  24. key — for a lock

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