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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. capital — a city
  3. spring — the season
  4. present — a gift
  5. suit — to fit
  6. pound — a weight
  7. track — a path
  8. present — there
  9. pitch — completely
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. track — to keep track
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. spring — a coil
  14. file — a line of people
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. track — a song
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. present — the time now
  19. suit — clothes
  20. suit — in cards
  21. file — a document
  22. capital — money
  23. file — a tool
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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