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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. staff — employees
  3. fine — all right
  4. track — a song
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. staff — a stick
  7. cell — a phone
  8. ground — a position
  9. pit — a hole
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. staff — employees
  12. cell — in biology
  13. fine — high quality
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. pit — in a race
  18. track — to keep track
  19. track — a path
  20. capital — a city
  21. ground — the earth
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. ground — crushed
  24. capital — money

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