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: bass · tear · snap · drill · capital · present

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bass — low music
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. present — a gift
  6. drill — army training
  7. bass — the fish
  8. present — there
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. drill — a practice
  11. tear — from crying
  12. drill — the tool
  13. snap — to click
  14. tear — to rip
  15. capital — money
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. tear — from crying
  18. present — the time now

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