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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mate — a partner
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. kick — in football
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. capital — a city
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. net — for catching
  10. rest — what's left
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. game — a match
  13. capital — money
  14. game — wild animals
  15. wax — to grow
  16. rest — a break
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. net — after costs
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. mate — a friend
  22. net — in sport
  23. rest — what's left
  24. mate — to breed

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