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 116 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: rush · cell · club · scale · pop · coach · board · cold

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. rush — hurry
  4. scale — size or range
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. cold — not warm
  8. board — to get on
  9. cold — an illness
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. club — for dancing
  13. scale — in music
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pop — soda
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. pop — music
  19. club — a group
  20. club — for golf
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. cell — in biology
  23. cell — a phone
  24. board — a committee

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