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: bore · racket · clip · patient · wound · degree · fan · capital

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. wound — an injury
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wound — an injury
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bore — to tire
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. bore — to drill
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. degree — from a university
  16. clip — a video
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. capital — money
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. degree — an amount
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — for paper
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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