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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. capital — money
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. vault — a safe
  5. cap — of ice
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. cap — a hat
  10. pound — a weight
  11. file — a line of people
  12. court — of law
  13. court — for sport
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a tool
  17. cap — a lid
  18. capital — a city
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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