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 124 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. capital — a city
  3. file — a line of people
  4. present — there
  5. saw — the tool
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. file — a tool
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. perch — the fish
  10. stand — to bear
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. present — a gift
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. file — a document
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. capital — money
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. present — the time now
  24. stand — for spectators

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