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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bound — tied together
  8. capital — money
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. capital — a city
  12. kid — child
  13. bound — obliged
  14. hand — in cards
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stock — shares
  18. bound — certain
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. hand — help
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. stock — goods
  24. patient — a sick person

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