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 120 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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. capital — a city
  3. pitch — completely
  4. capital — money
  5. object — a thing
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. object — to protest
  8. club — a group
  9. object — an aim
  10. spring — of water
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. club — for golf
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. face — to point toward
  16. spring — the season
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. face — to confront
  19. sharp — clever
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. face — part of the head
  22. club — for dancing
  23. spring — a coil
  24. sharp — exactly

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