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 120 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. row — to paddle
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bat — the animal
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. scale — size or range
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. wind — moving air
  12. scale — in music
  13. row — a line
  14. rule — government
  15. capital — a city
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. bound — certain
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. rule — a law
  22. capital — money
  23. bound — obliged
  24. wind — to turn a key

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