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 116 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: sharp · row · cell · bound · content · capital · chip · net

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. chip — for betting
  3. cell — a phone
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. row — a line
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bound — tied together
  10. bound — obliged
  11. chip — to eat
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. capital — money
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — happy
  16. row — to paddle
  17. sharp — clever
  18. bound — certain
  19. capital — a city
  20. net — for catching
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — in biology
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — in sport

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