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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. tube — a container
  5. race — a contest
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. field — for sport
  8. race — the arms race
  9. tube — the underground
  10. ground — a position
  11. field — a subject
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. field — farmland
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — the earth
  16. capital — a city
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — a phone
  19. charge — a price
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. charge — electricity
  22. charge — in control
  23. race — humankind
  24. capital — money

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