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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. press — a publisher
  3. pop — music
  4. court — for sport
  5. cap — of ice
  6. press — newspapers
  7. bark — to shout
  8. cap — a hat
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pop — soda
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. court — of a king
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. press — to push
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. court — of law
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. chip — for betting
  20. chip — to eat
  21. cap — a lid
  22. capital — money
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  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