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: craft · court · wind · cabinet · band · cold · chip · patient

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. craft — a skill
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. court — of a king
  7. wind — moving air
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. chip — for betting
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. chip — to eat
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. band — a ring
  21. craft — boats
  22. court — of law
  23. band — a music group
  24. wind — moving air

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