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: press · saw · coach · object · hide · pit · capital · cell

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. capital — money
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. capital — a city
  7. press — to push
  8. press — a publisher
  9. object — a thing
  10. press — newspapers
  11. cell — a phone
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cell — in biology
  16. pit — a hole
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. saw — the tool
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. pit — in a race
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. object — to protest

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