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: court · squash · content · rash · shower · firm · foot · kid

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. rash — hasty
  3. court — of a king
  4. shower — rain
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. squash — to crush
  7. shower — to wash
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. court — for sport
  12. firm — a company
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. kid — child
  17. content — happy
  18. firm — decided
  19. squash — the sport
  20. rash — a series
  21. court — of law
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. foot — a measure
  24. firm — steady

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