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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  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. net — after costs
  2. capital — money
  3. can — to be able to
  4. pop — music
  5. scale — size or range
  6. bat — the animal
  7. pop — soda
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. capital — a city
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — in sport
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. can — a tin
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. pop — to visit
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. scale — in music
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. can — a tin
  23. stand — to bear
  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