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 120 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: capital · bowl · kid · rash · rule · chair

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. kid — to tease
  5. capital — money
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. rule — a law
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — a series
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. chair — a leader
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. rule — government
  17. kid — child
  18. rash — on the skin

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