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: shower · chair · club · court · tube · kick · kid · lash

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. court — for sport
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. kick — in football
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. kid — child
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. club — for golf
  12. tube — the underground
  13. club — a group
  14. shower — rain
  15. club — for dancing
  16. tube — a container
  17. chair — a leader
  18. shower — to wash
  19. court — of law
  20. kid — to tease
  21. court — of a king
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. chair — a professorship

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