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: clip · roll · board · stem · press · club · court · patient

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. press — a publisher
  3. court — of law
  4. press — to push
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. board — to get on
  7. board — a committee
  8. club — for dancing
  9. court — for sport
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. clip — to cut
  12. court — of a king
  13. stem — to come from
  14. clip — for paper
  15. club — for golf
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. clip — a video
  18. club — a group
  19. press — newspapers
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. roll — a list
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. board — a flat piece

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