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: can · season · bay · foot · race · court · clip · fall

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. race — a contest
  3. court — for sport
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. clip — to cut
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — to drop
  8. can — a tin
  9. clip — for paper
  10. season — in sport
  11. race — the arms race
  12. foot — a measure
  13. season — of the year
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. race — humankind
  16. fall — the season
  17. can — a tin
  18. clip — a video
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. court — of law
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. court — of a king
  24. can — to be able to

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