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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. ball — a dance
  3. bulb — for light
  4. wake — a trail
  5. fine — all right
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. ball — a great time
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. capital — a city
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. net — after costs
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. net — for catching
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. net — in sport
  18. clip — to cut
  19. capital — money
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. bulb — for light
  22. fine — high quality
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. wake — before a funeral

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