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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  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. spring — the season
  2. march — the month
  3. march — the month
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. fine — high quality
  6. spring — of water
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. race — the arms race
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. spring — a coil
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. wind — moving air
  14. capital — a city
  15. race — a contest
  16. march — music
  17. cell — a phone
  18. fine — all right
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. race — humankind
  23. cell — in biology
  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