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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chair — a leader
  3. shower — to wash
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. rule — government
  7. capital — money
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. lean — to bend
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. wake — a trail
  13. swing — to play on
  14. shower — rain
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. capital — a city
  17. swing — in golf
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. swing — music
  20. rule — a law
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. lean — thin
  24. perch — the fish

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