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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. press — to push
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. press — newspapers
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cap — a lid
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. cold — an illness
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. shower — rain
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. shower — to wash
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — money
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. cold — not warm

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