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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. tube — a container
  5. kick — in football
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. band — a music group
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — money
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. tube — the underground
  14. season — of the year
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. band — a ring
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. season — in sport
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. fork — to eat with

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