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 120 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: stock · bat · last · capital · pop · mate · scale · wake

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bat — the animal
  4. pop — music
  5. stock — shares
  6. mate — to breed
  7. last — finally
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. wake — a trail
  13. mate — a partner
  14. capital — a city
  15. scale — size or range
  16. stock — goods
  17. mate — a friend
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. capital — money
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. pop — to visit
  24. stock — a soup base

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