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: bat · cell · court · sharp · scale · clip · calf · pound

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cell — a phone
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — for paper
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. scale — in music
  7. pound — a weight
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. court — of a king
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. cell — in biology
  15. scale — size or range
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. court — of law
  18. clip — a video
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. court — for sport
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. sharp — clever
  24. pound — to hit hard

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