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: fork · face · sharp · snap · shower · plane · capital · pit

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. pit — a hole
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — to point toward
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. shower — to wash
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. capital — a city
  11. shower — rain
  12. sharp — clever
  13. face — part of the head
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. fork — in a road
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. plane — a tool
  21. pit — in a race
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. capital — money

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