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: squash · shower · court · cap · file · spring · last · mate

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — a coil
  3. cap — a lid
  4. court — of law
  5. last — to go on
  6. shower — rain
  7. last — finally
  8. squash — to crush
  9. file — a line of people
  10. mate — a partner
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. last — final
  13. shower — to wash
  14. file — a tool
  15. court — for sport
  16. file — a document
  17. cap — a hat
  18. court — of a king
  19. spring — the season
  20. squash — the sport
  21. cap — of ice
  22. mate — a friend
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. mate — to breed

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