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 116 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. capital — a city
  3. ground — a position
  4. clip — for paper
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. kid — to tease
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. kid — child
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — to cut
  14. capital — money
  15. kick — in football
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. branch — a division
  20. ground — the earth
  21. vault — a safe
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. branch — of a tree

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