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: bass · last · cue · craft · land · content · wake · capital

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. cue — for pool
  3. last — final
  4. bass — the fish
  5. cue — a hint
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. craft — boats
  8. land — a country
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. land — to come down
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — happy
  13. wake — a trail
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bass — low music
  16. last — finally
  17. capital — money
  18. craft — a skill
  19. cue — a signal
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. land — ground
  23. capital — a city
  24. bass — the instrument

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