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 116 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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. hand — in cards
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. capital — money
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. capital — a city
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — an illness
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. pop — soda
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. clip — to cut
  16. pop — to visit
  17. vault — a safe
  18. deal — to handle
  19. clip — a video
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. clip — for paper
  23. pop — music
  24. hand — part of the body

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