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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. mate — a partner
  4. wake — a trail
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. mate — a friend
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. capital — a city
  9. rule — a law
  10. degree — temperature
  11. rash — hasty
  12. court — of a king
  13. rule — government
  14. capital — money
  15. degree — from a university
  16. court — for sport
  17. rash — a series
  18. fall — to drop
  19. mate — to breed
  20. fall — the season
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. court — of law
  23. degree — an amount
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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