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: club · squash · court · row · race · fan · band · hand

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. club — a group
  3. band — a ring
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. club — for dancing
  6. squash — to crush
  7. band — a music group
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. court — for sport
  12. race — a contest
  13. row — a line
  14. race — humankind
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. court — of law
  17. club — for golf
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. court — of a king
  20. hand — in cards
  21. squash — the sport
  22. row — to paddle
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. hand — help

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