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: clip · capital · trunk · chair · foot · tube · fall · degree

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. degree — from a university
  5. fall — to drop
  6. capital — money
  7. clip — a video
  8. tube — a container
  9. degree — temperature
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. foot — a measure
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. degree — an amount
  16. clip — for paper
  17. clip — to cut
  18. fall — the season
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. chair — a leader
  21. capital — a city
  22. fall — to drop
  23. tube — the underground
  24. tube — in a tire

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