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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. capital — a city
  3. land — a country
  4. kick — in football
  5. chip — for betting
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. season — in sport
  8. season — of the year
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. fall — to drop
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. fall — the season
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. fall — to drop
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. land — ground
  19. chip — to eat
  20. degree — an amount
  21. land — to come down
  22. degree — from a university
  23. capital — money
  24. degree — temperature

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