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: court · foot · nail · cell · bound · straw · deal · file

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. cell — in biology
  3. court — for sport
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. court — of a king
  7. court — of law
  8. bound — obliged
  9. cell — a phone
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bound — certain
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. bound — tied together
  18. file — a tool
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. deal — to handle
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. file — a document
  23. file — a line of people
  24. foot — a measure

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