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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. capital — a city
  3. spring — a coil
  4. fine — high quality
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. current — happening now
  7. spell — a short time
  8. chip — for betting
  9. current — electric
  10. spring — the season
  11. current — of water
  12. wake — a trail
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. spring — of water
  15. capital — money
  16. spell — magic
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. bat — the animal
  19. fine — all right
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. spell — letters
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. fine — a penalty

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