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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. capital — money
  3. suit — clothes
  4. net — in sport
  5. capital — a city
  6. roll — a cake
  7. sharp — clever
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. roll — a list
  11. land — ground
  12. net — after costs
  13. land — a country
  14. net — for catching
  15. suit — to fit
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. game — wild animals
  19. tube — a container
  20. land — to come down
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. suit — in cards
  23. tube — the underground
  24. game — a match

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