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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. race — a contest
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. file — a document
  7. stock — goods
  8. file — a tool
  9. capital — a city
  10. race — the arms race
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — for paper
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. file — a line of people
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. stock — shares

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