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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. stock — shares
  4. stock — goods
  5. cap — a lid
  6. hand — in cards
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. capital — money
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. shower — rain
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — help
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. cap — of ice
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. lie — to recline
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. capital — a city
  20. band — a ring
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. cap — a hat
  23. shower — to wash
  24. lie — an untruth

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