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: press · hand · stem · perch · court · bat · mouse · cap

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. bat — the animal
  3. court — for sport
  4. hand — help
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. hand — in cards
  7. press — a publisher
  8. court — of law
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. stem — to come from
  12. court — of a king
  13. perch — the fish
  14. cap — a hat
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. press — to push
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cap — a lid
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. cap — of ice
  22. press — newspapers
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. stem — of a plant

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