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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. mine — for digging
  4. last — finally
  5. craft — a skill
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. scale — in music
  8. last — to go on
  9. spell — letters
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. craft — boats
  13. scale — size or range
  14. capital — money
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bark — to shout
  18. last — final
  19. spell — magic
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. spell — a short time

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