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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. mug — a cup
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. game — a match
  8. game — wild animals
  9. squash — to crush
  10. mug — a face
  11. chair — a leader
  12. clip — a video
  13. suit — to fit
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. clip — for paper
  16. scale — in music
  17. scale — size or range
  18. cold — not warm
  19. suit — clothes
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. cold — an illness
  22. squash — the sport
  23. suit — in cards
  24. clip — to cut

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