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: march · press · cell · mug · capital · wind · spring · mate

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. march — the month
  3. spring — a coil
  4. press — a publisher
  5. mate — to breed
  6. wind — moving air
  7. capital — a city
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — of water
  10. cell — in biology
  11. mate — a friend
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. mug — a cup
  15. wind — moving air
  16. mug — to rob
  17. march — music
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. mate — a partner
  20. press — to push
  21. march — the month
  22. press — newspapers
  23. cell — a phone
  24. mug — a face

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