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: row · kid · scale · straw · court · key · capital · tube

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. scale — size or range
  3. court — of a king
  4. key — for a lock
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. key — the most important part
  8. kid — child
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. tube — a container
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. tube — the underground
  13. kid — to tease
  14. key — in music
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — a city
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. row — a line
  21. row — to paddle
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. capital — money
  24. straw — a straw man

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