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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. pop — soda
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. saw — the tool
  5. capital — money
  6. season — of the year
  7. rush — hurry
  8. ball — a dance
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. capital — a city
  12. ball — a great time
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. bass — the fish
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. bass — low music
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. pop — to visit
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. cold — an illness
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. pop — music
  23. saw — the tool
  24. cold — not warm

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