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

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. cold — an illness
  3. band — a music group
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. rash — a series
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — not warm
  9. pitch — completely
  10. rash — hasty
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. bore — to tire
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. capital — money
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. capital — a city
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bore — to drill
  24. band — a ring

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