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: wound · rest · court · rash · bat · hand · rock · stem

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. rash — hasty
  6. bat — the animal
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. stem — to come from
  9. rock — a stone
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. court — for sport
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. wound — an injury
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wound — an injury
  16. court — of law
  17. rest — a break
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. rock — music
  20. hand — help
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. rash — a series
  23. rest — what's left
  24. hand — in cards

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