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: pitcher · court · trunk · fine · snap · cell · ground · date

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. date — the fruit
  5. cell — a phone
  6. ground — a position
  7. cell — in biology
  8. court — of law
  9. court — of a king
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. snap — to click
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. court — for sport
  15. fine — high quality
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. fine — all right
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — crushed
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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