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: cap · bark · ground · file · capital · plane · band · pitch

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. capital — money
  4. cap — a hat
  5. ground — crushed
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. plane — a tool
  8. file — a tool
  9. cap — of ice
  10. file — a line of people
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — a position
  14. band — a ring
  15. pitch — completely
  16. band — a music group
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. cap — a lid
  19. capital — a city
  20. bark — to shout
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. file — a document
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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