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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rule · cell · court · perch · cold · rock

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. rule — government
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. cold — not warm
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. court — of law
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. cold — an illness
  9. perch — the fish
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. rule — a law
  13. cell — a phone
  14. rock — a stone
  15. court — of a king
  16. rock — music
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cold — the Cold War

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