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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. ball — a great time
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. cold — an illness
  8. capital — money
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. date — the fruit
  12. mark — a grade
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. pitch — completely
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. capital — a city
  22. ball — a dance
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. date — on the calendar

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