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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. cap — a hat
  4. capital — a city
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. cap — of ice
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. current — of water
  9. face — part of the head
  10. face — to confront
  11. current — electric
  12. chair — a leader
  13. capital — money
  14. mine — for digging
  15. face — to point toward
  16. spell — letters
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. spell — a short time
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. spell — magic
  22. current — happening now
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. cap — a lid

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