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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a city
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. scale — in music
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wind — moving air
  10. file — a line of people
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wind — moving air
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a document
  19. stock — goods
  20. scale — size or range
  21. toast — bread
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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