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: wound · capital · fan · chest · kid · suit · rule · charge

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. chest — of your body
  3. suit — clothes
  4. rule — government
  5. capital — money
  6. wound — an injury
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. chest — of your body
  9. charge — a price
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. wound — an injury
  12. kid — child
  13. suit — to fit
  14. kid — to tease
  15. chest — a box
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — a city
  18. charge — electricity
  19. suit — in cards
  20. rule — a law
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. charge — in control
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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