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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. track — a path
  3. net — for catching
  4. roll — a cake
  5. track — to keep track
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. net — in sport
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. season — of the year
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. season — in sport
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. net — after costs
  16. capital — money
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. track — a song
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. roll — a list
  24. bark — to shout

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