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 116 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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — for catching
  3. last — to go on
  4. race — a contest
  5. race — humankind
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. race — the arms race
  8. capital — a city
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. last — final
  12. fall — the season
  13. cell — in biology
  14. capital — money
  15. saw — the tool
  16. pass — a permit
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. net — in sport
  19. cell — a phone
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — to drop
  24. last — finally

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