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: present · cold · file · band · cabinet · court · scale · squash

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. scale — size or range
  5. file — a line of people
  6. file — a document
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. squash — to crush
  9. file — a tool
  10. court — of a king
  11. band — a ring
  12. present — a gift
  13. cold — an illness
  14. squash — the sport
  15. present — the time now
  16. court — for sport
  17. scale — in music
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. band — a music group
  23. present — there
  24. cold — not warm

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