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: last · swing · season · mine · current · pit · net · capital

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. last — final
  6. season — in sport
  7. current — happening now
  8. current — electric
  9. capital — a city
  10. capital — money
  11. net — in sport
  12. mine — for digging
  13. season — of the year
  14. pit — in a race
  15. last — finally
  16. last — to go on
  17. net — after costs
  18. pit — a hole
  19. swing — to play on
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. net — for catching
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — in golf

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