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: nail · capital · saw · file · calf · tear · wound · degree

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. degree — from a university
  5. tear — from crying
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. degree — temperature
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. file — a document
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. wound — an injury
  14. tear — from crying
  15. degree — an amount
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a line of people
  18. tear — to rip
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. capital — a city
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. wound — an injury
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. saw — the tool

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