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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. march — music
  3. march — the month
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. tear — from crying
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. press — a publisher
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. press — newspapers
  11. snap — to click
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. saw — the tool
  14. kid — child
  15. tear — to rip
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. kid — to tease
  19. march — the month
  20. capital — money
  21. tear — from crying
  22. saw — the tool
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. capital — a city

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