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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. court — of law
  3. court — of a king
  4. deal — to handle
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. pitch — completely
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. cell — in biology
  9. hand — in cards
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. hand — help
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. ball — a dance
  14. court — for sport
  15. ball — a great time
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. shower — to wash
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. row — a line
  21. row — to paddle
  22. shower — rain
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. deal — an agreement

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