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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bear — the animal
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. roll — a cake
  7. plane — a tool
  8. last — final
  9. chip — to eat
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. roll — a list
  13. bear — the animal
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. last — finally
  16. capital — a city
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. last — to go on
  19. kick — in football
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. capital — money
  24. chip — for betting

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