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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. capital — a city
  6. chip — to eat
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. chip — for betting
  9. squash — to crush
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. fall — to drop
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. cell — a phone
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. cell — in biology
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. squash — the sport
  22. capital — money
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. branch — of a bank

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