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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. track — a path
  3. capital — money
  4. deal — to handle
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. can — a tin
  10. clip — to cut
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. can — to be able to
  14. clip — for paper
  15. present — there
  16. present — the time now
  17. fork — in a road
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. track — to keep track
  20. clip — a video
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. can — a tin
  23. track — a song
  24. capital — a city

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