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: game · deal · cold · cue · racket · hand · trunk · mine

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. game — a match
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — an illness
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. game — wild animals
  8. mine — for digging
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. cue — a signal
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. hand — in cards
  15. cue — for pool
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. hand — help
  20. cue — a hint
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. game — a kind of play

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