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: hand · kick · court · stock · fork · snap · present · date

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. fork — in a road
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. hand — in cards
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. hand — help
  10. court — for sport
  11. snap — to click
  12. date — the fruit
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. stock — shares
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stock — goods
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. court — of law
  19. court — of a king
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. present — a gift
  22. present — the time now
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. present — there

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