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: shower · game · wound · mouse · court · wax · ball · chip

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. court — for sport
  6. wound — an injury
  7. game — wild animals
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wound — an injury
  10. game — a match
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. ball — a dance
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. shower — rain
  15. shower — to wash
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — to eat
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. wax — to grow
  21. ball — a great time
  22. court — of law
  23. court — of a king
  24. ball — a round shape

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