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: racket · march · capital · race · stick · drill

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. drill — army training
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. race — humankind
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. march — the month
  11. march — music
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — a practice
  14. march — the month
  15. capital — a city
  16. capital — money
  17. race — the arms race
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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