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 116 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: bulb · cold · capital · rush · court · last

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. bulb — for light
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — hurry
  5. last — to go on
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. court — for sport
  8. cold — an illness
  9. last — finally
  10. bulb — for light
  11. last — final
  12. court — of law
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. cold — not warm
  16. court — of a king
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. rush — to hurry

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