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: bay · capital · shower · tear · coach · mouse · swing · chest

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. chest — a box
  5. tear — to rip
  6. swing — in golf
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. chest — of your body
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. tear — from crying
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. tear — from crying
  16. capital — money
  17. shower — rain
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. swing — music
  22. chest — of your body
  23. shower — to wash
  24. capital — a city

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