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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. spring — a coil
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. capital — money
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. file — a line of people
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. file — a tool
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. chair — a leader
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. spring — of water
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. file — a document
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. spring — the season
  21. pass — a permit
  22. capital — a city
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. stock — shares

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