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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. capital — a city
  3. prune — to trim
  4. current — happening now
  5. prune — to trim
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. mug — a face
  8. rule — a law
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. mug — to rob
  13. current — of water
  14. row — a line
  15. bat — the animal
  16. rule — government
  17. capital — money
  18. row — to paddle
  19. pop — soda
  20. current — electric
  21. pop — to visit
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. mug — a cup

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