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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. last — to go on
  3. capital — a city
  4. mark — a trace
  5. bound — tied together
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. court — for sport
  9. court — of law
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. band — a ring
  12. season — of the year
  13. band — a music group
  14. ball — a dance
  15. bound — obliged
  16. capital — money
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. bound — certain
  19. last — finally
  20. court — of a king
  21. ball — a great time
  22. last — final
  23. season — in sport
  24. capital — a big letter

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