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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. club — for golf
  4. capital — money
  5. ground — a position
  6. kid — to tease
  7. ground — crushed
  8. march — the month
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. ground — the earth
  11. club — for dancing
  12. last — to go on
  13. march — the month
  14. capital — a city
  15. last — finally
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. pound — a weight
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. last — final
  20. march — music
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. club — a group
  24. kid — child

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