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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. club — for dancing
  3. saw — the tool
  4. net — in sport
  5. capital — a city
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. mine — for digging
  8. club — a group
  9. club — for golf
  10. net — for catching
  11. net — after costs
  12. spell — magic
  13. saw — the tool
  14. spell — letters
  15. spell — a short time
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. capital — money
  20. snap — to click
  21. mate — a friend
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mine — belonging to me

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