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: fan · rule · nail · game · capital · fine · shower · clip

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — money
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. clip — to cut
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. fine — high quality
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. rule — government
  11. shower — rain
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. game — wild animals
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. game — a match
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. rule — a law
  19. clip — a video
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. fine — all right
  22. clip — for paper
  23. shower — to wash
  24. fan — to cool the air

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