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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. file — a line of people
  5. mark — a grade
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. rash — a series
  9. chair — a leader
  10. capital — money
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. capital — a city
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. rash — hasty
  16. file — a tool
  17. season — of the year
  18. mark — a trace
  19. file — a document
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. season — in sport
  24. bat — the animal

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