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 120 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: hand · fork · court · land · march · cabinet · ball · pitcher

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. hand — help
  3. court — of a king
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. fork — in a road
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. court — for sport
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. march — music
  12. land — ground
  13. hand — in cards
  14. march — the month
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. land — to come down
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. court — of law
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. land — a country
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. march — the month
  24. ball — a great time

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