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 · capital · tear · spring · swing · lean

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. capital — a city
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. lean — to bend
  8. tear — from crying
  9. swing — music
  10. spring — a coil
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. swing — to play on
  13. tear — from crying
  14. spring — the season
  15. tear — to rip
  16. capital — money
  17. lean — thin
  18. swing — in golf

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