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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  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. mate — a partner
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stock — goods
  4. cold — not warm
  5. ground — crushed
  6. pit — a hole
  7. mate — a friend
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. mate — to breed
  10. capital — money
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cold — an illness
  13. rush — hurry
  14. staff — employees
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. pit — in a race
  18. staff — a stick
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — the earth
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. capital — a city
  23. stock — shares
  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