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: content · court · cue · last · can · bulb · chest · clip

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. content — the amount
  3. can — a tin
  4. can — to be able to
  5. can — a tin
  6. cue — a hint
  7. court — for sport
  8. clip — for paper
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. chest — a box
  11. content — happy
  12. bulb — for light
  13. chest — of your body
  14. last — to go on
  15. cue — a signal
  16. last — finally
  17. last — final
  18. clip — a video
  19. court — of law
  20. clip — to cut
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bulb — for light
  23. cue — for pool
  24. content — videos and posts

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