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: straw · calf · rock · wind · bat · vault · capital · spell

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. rock — music
  3. capital — money
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — letters
  6. capital — a city
  7. bat — the animal
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. wind — moving air
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. spell — magic
  18. rock — a stone
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. vault — a safe
  24. capital — a big letter

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