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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. content — the amount
  3. present — the time now
  4. present — there
  5. press — to push
  6. race — a contest
  7. content — happy
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. race — the arms race
  10. race — humankind
  11. press — newspapers
  12. game — a match
  13. file — a tool
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. press — a publisher
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. stock — goods
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a document
  21. scale — in music
  22. scale — size or range
  23. game — wild animals
  24. present — a gift

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