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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. net — after costs
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. face — to point toward
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. net — in sport
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. march — music
  10. capital — money
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. march — the month
  13. face — part of the head
  14. chair — a leader
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. face — to confront
  19. season — of the year
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. net — for catching
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

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