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: capital · face · temple · spring · kid · cell · racket · date

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. face — to confront
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. capital — a city
  8. kid — child
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. cell — in biology
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. cell — a phone
  13. spring — a coil
  14. face — to point toward
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. date — the fruit
  18. spring — of water
  19. capital — money
  20. kid — to tease
  21. spring — the season
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. face — part of the head
  24. temple — a place of worship

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