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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — a stick
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. track — a path
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. track — to keep track
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. race — a contest
  9. track — a song
  10. row — a line
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. drill — a practice
  13. pit — in a race
  14. capital — money
  15. drill — army training
  16. capital — a city
  17. pit — a hole
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. race — humankind
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. race — the arms race
  22. drill — the tool
  23. row — to paddle
  24. staff — employees

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