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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. last — finally
  3. last — final
  4. rash — hasty
  5. press — a publisher
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. capital — money
  8. stem — to come from
  9. capital — a city
  10. press — newspapers
  11. swing — in golf
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. last — to go on
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. press — to push
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. rash — a series
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. swing — to play on
  21. squash — to crush
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a line
  24. swing — music

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