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: game · hand · shower · capital · deal · bound · rock · squash

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. rock — a stone
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. squash — to crush
  5. hand — in cards
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bound — certain
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. hand — help
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. game — wild animals
  14. shower — to wash
  15. bound — obliged
  16. capital — a city
  17. deal — to handle
  18. bound — tied together
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. rock — music
  21. capital — money
  22. squash — the sport
  23. game — a match
  24. shower — rain

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