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: chair · staff · present · vault · wake · capital · bear · tear

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. chair — a leader
  3. capital — money
  4. tear — from crying
  5. staff — employees
  6. present — a gift
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. wake — a trail
  10. bear — the animal
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — a city
  14. staff — employees
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. vault — a safe
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. present — there
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. present — the time now
  24. staff — a stick

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