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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. net — for catching
  5. game — wild animals
  6. land — to come down
  7. capital — a city
  8. stock — goods
  9. land — a country
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — money
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. stock — shares
  14. land — ground
  15. net — after costs
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. toast — bread
  18. game — a match

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