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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. march — music
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. plane — a tool
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. mine — for digging
  13. clip — for paper
  14. rash — a series
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. clip — to cut
  17. rash — hasty
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. clip — a video
  21. march — the month
  22. capital — a city
  23. march — the month
  24. capital — a big letter

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