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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. capital — a city
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. tube — the underground
  6. field — a subject
  7. cold — not warm
  8. field — for sport
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bound — certain
  11. field — farmland
  12. tube — a container
  13. bear — the animal
  14. capital — money
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cold — an illness
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. capital — a big letter

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