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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. bound — certain
  4. bound — obliged
  5. cue — for pool
  6. cue — a hint
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. branch — a division
  9. cue — a signal
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. wake — a trail
  13. cold — not warm
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. land — to come down
  18. bound — tied together
  19. cold — an illness
  20. land — a country
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. land — ground
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — a city

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