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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. last — final
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. capital — a city
  9. swing — in golf
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. last — to go on
  12. net — in sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — after costs
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. present — there
  17. capital — money
  18. present — the time now
  19. last — finally
  20. swing — music
  21. date — the fruit
  22. stem — to come from
  23. present — a gift
  24. swing — to play on

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