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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. land — a country
  5. rule — a law
  6. charge — a price
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. charge — in control
  9. degree — from a university
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. degree — an amount
  12. rush — hurry
  13. last — finally
  14. last — to go on
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. charge — electricity
  17. degree — temperature
  18. capital — money
  19. land — ground
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. last — final
  24. land — to come down

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