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 120 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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mug — a face
  4. pass — a permit
  5. capital — money
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. dip — to sink
  8. mine — for digging
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. game — a match
  12. band — a music group
  13. capital — a city
  14. mug — to rob
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. game — wild animals
  17. band — a ring
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. mug — a cup
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. straw — a straw man

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