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: game · safe · capital · kid · dip · bat · squash · object

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. capital — a city
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. squash — the sport
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. object — a thing
  11. capital — money
  12. game — wild animals
  13. kid — to tease
  14. game — a match
  15. kid — child
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — the animal
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. object — an aim
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. squash — to crush

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