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: wake · fan · spring · perch · ball · court · game · arm

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. spring — the season
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. spring — of water
  6. court — of a king
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. spring — a coil
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. ball — a dance
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. game — wild animals
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. perch — the fish
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. ball — a great time
  21. wake — a trail
  22. court — of law
  23. court — for sport
  24. fan — to cool the air

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