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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: capital · temple · chest · kid · swing · coach

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. kid — child
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. capital — a city
  5. chest — of your body
  6. kid — to tease
  7. swing — in golf
  8. capital — money
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. swing — to play on
  12. chest — of your body
  13. swing — music
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. chest — a box
  18. capital — a big letter

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