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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. cold — not warm
  5. capital — a city
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. content — the amount
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. file — a document
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. ball — a great time
  16. file — a tool
  17. ball — a dance
  18. capital — money
  19. content — happy
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. file — a line of people
  22. dip — to sink
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. bay — a horse colour

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