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: rash · kid · perch · hand · present · kick · game · swing

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. present — a gift
  6. swing — music
  7. hand — in cards
  8. kid — to tease
  9. perch — the fish
  10. hand — help
  11. kid — child
  12. kick — in football
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. swing — in golf
  15. present — the time now
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. rash — a series
  18. game — a match
  19. present — there
  20. swing — to play on
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. game — wild animals
  23. rash — hasty
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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