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: chair · kid · mate · cold · present · band · stand · court

  1. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. court — for sport
  4. stand — to bear
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. court — of law
  7. present — there
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. mate — to breed
  10. mate — a friend
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — not warm
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. present — the time now
  15. present — a gift
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. band — a ring
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. mate — a partner
  20. chair — a leader
  21. band — a music group
  22. court — of a king
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — child

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