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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bound — certain
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. squash — to crush
  5. bound — obliged
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. squash — the sport
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. game — wild animals
  11. kid — to tease
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. capital — a city
  14. bound — tied together
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. game — a match
  17. staff — employees
  18. swing — music
  19. swing — to play on
  20. swing — in golf
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. staff — a stick
  23. staff — employees
  24. kid — child

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