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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. last — finally
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. rule — a law
  10. kick — in football
  11. rule — government
  12. fork — in a road
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. last — to go on
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. pass — a permit
  20. last — final
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. capital — money
  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