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: pit · mate · board · capital · chest · band · kid · charge

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. mate — a friend
  7. capital — money
  8. pit — in a race
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — child
  11. board — to get on
  12. charge — a price
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. chest — of your body
  17. band — a music group
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. charge — in control
  20. band — a ring
  21. capital — a city
  22. charge — electricity
  23. mate — a partner
  24. pit — a hole

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