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: row · racket · chest · chip · court · fan · land · kick

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. court — of a king
  3. chest — of your body
  4. land — to come down
  5. chip — for betting
  6. chest — of your body
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. row — to paddle
  9. land — a country
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. land — ground
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. chest — a box
  18. row — a line
  19. court — for sport
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. chip — to eat
  23. court — of law
  24. racket — for tennis

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