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 120 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: degree · capital · chair · can · lash · march · pitcher · game

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. chair — a leader
  3. march — the month
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — a match
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. game — wild animals
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. degree — temperature
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. degree — an amount
  15. can — a tin
  16. degree — from a university
  17. can — to be able to
  18. can — a tin
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. capital — money
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. capital — a city
  23. march — the month
  24. pitcher — a jug

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