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

Word bank: chest · press · pound · clip · rock · present · court · temple

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. chest — a box
  4. court — for sport
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. court — of law
  8. present — there
  9. clip — to cut
  10. rock — music
  11. press — newspapers
  12. rock — a stone
  13. pound — a weight
  14. press — to push
  15. present — a gift
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. chest — of your body
  20. court — of a king
  21. present — the time now
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. clip — a video
  24. press — a publisher

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