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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. rule — government
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. tube — a container
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. chair — a leader
  10. cell — in biology
  11. last — finally
  12. cell — a phone
  13. season — of the year
  14. tube — the underground
  15. last — to go on
  16. mark — a trace
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. mark — a grade
  20. capital — a city
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. capital — money
  23. rule — a law
  24. season — in sport

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