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: wave · capital · stem · wind · content · cell

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. capital — money
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. wind — moving air
  7. content — happy
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. wind — moving air
  13. content — the amount
  14. cell — a phone
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. cell — in biology
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. wave — a sudden rise

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