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: lash · hand · capital · pound · stock · leaves · cold · tube

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. capital — a city
  3. tube — a container
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. pound — a weight
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. stock — goods
  8. capital — money
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. stock — shares
  13. cold — not warm
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. tube — the underground
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. cold — an illness
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. hand — help

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