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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. court — for sport
  4. bulb — for light
  5. bulb — for light
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — to rip
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. race — a contest
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — not warm
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. court — of a king
  17. game — wild animals
  18. race — humankind
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. game — a match
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. tear — from crying
  24. race — the arms race

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