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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. cap — of ice
  4. spell — magic
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. hand — help
  7. clip — to cut
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. spell — a short time
  12. clip — for paper
  13. spell — letters
  14. hand — in cards
  15. clip — a video
  16. cap — a lid
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. cap — a hat
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. capital — a city
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. capital — money
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. dip — to sink

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