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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — wild animals
  3. hand — help
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kick — in football
  8. game — a match
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. court — of law
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. pop — to visit
  15. court — for sport
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. hand — in cards
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. pop — soda
  21. court — of a king
  22. stand — to bear
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. pop — music

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