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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. march — the month
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. mug — a face
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. mug — to rob
  12. march — the month
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. march — music
  15. mug — a cup
  16. wind — moving air
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. stock — goods
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. capital — money
  23. pitch — completely
  24. capital — a city

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