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: race · land · pit · press · net · cell · foot · cue

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. press — a publisher
  3. net — after costs
  4. cell — a phone
  5. land — a country
  6. net — for catching
  7. pit — in a race
  8. foot — a measure
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. race — the arms race
  11. pit — a hole
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. cue — a signal
  14. cue — for pool
  15. press — to push
  16. cell — in biology
  17. net — in sport
  18. race — humankind
  19. cue — a hint
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. land — to come down
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. race — a contest
  24. press — newspapers

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