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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — in cards
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mine — for digging
  5. cue — for pool
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. cue — a signal
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. cue — a hint
  12. capital — money
  13. charge — electricity
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. charge — a price
  18. wake — a trail
  19. capital — a city
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. wind — moving air
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. charge — in control

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