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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. pitch — completely
  3. capital — money
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. capital — a city
  6. bank — of a river
  7. bank — for money
  8. net — after costs
  9. bank — for money
  10. net — for catching
  11. mate — a friend
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. rash — hasty
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. net — in sport
  21. row — a line
  22. mine — for digging
  23. rash — a series
  24. row — to paddle

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