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: bulb · sharp · stand · chair · spring · pound · content · capital

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. spring — the season
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. bulb — for light
  9. content — happy
  10. capital — money
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. spring — of water
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. stand — to bear
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. spring — a coil
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. sharp — clever
  22. content — the amount
  23. bulb — for light
  24. pound — a weight

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