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 124 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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. wound — an injury
  3. object — an aim
  4. game — a match
  5. game — wild animals
  6. object — to protest
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. chest — of your body
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pass — a permit
  11. foot — a measure
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. object — a thing
  14. chest — a box
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. band — a ring
  17. wound — an injury
  18. band — a music group
  19. court — of law
  20. court — for sport
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. court — of a king
  24. foot — part of the body

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