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 116 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: perch · hand · bay · deal · bank · court · spring · file

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. spring — the season
  3. spring — of water
  4. court — for sport
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. court — of law
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. hand — help
  9. bank — for money
  10. bank — of a river
  11. bank — for money
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. hand — in cards
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. file — a document
  19. file — a tool
  20. court — of a king
  21. spring — a coil
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. file — a line of people
  24. deal — to handle

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