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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. file — a line of people
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. shower — to wash
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. sharp — clever
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. file — a tool
  10. capital — money
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. capital — a city
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bark — to shout
  20. lie — to recline
  21. content — happy
  22. content — the amount
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. sharp — exactly

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