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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. current — electric
  4. capital — a city
  5. squash — to crush
  6. can — to be able to
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. rash — hasty
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — the sport
  12. can — a tin
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. current — happening now
  16. scale — size or range
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. scale — in music
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — a series
  22. hand — in cards
  23. current — of water
  24. can — a tin

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