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: chest · clip · march · object · rash · race · capital · fork

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — for paper
  4. race — the arms race
  5. capital — a city
  6. march — music
  7. chest — a box
  8. march — the month
  9. rash — a series
  10. object — an aim
  11. race — a contest
  12. capital — money
  13. fork — in a road
  14. object — to protest
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. chest — of your body
  17. march — the month
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. rash — hasty
  21. object — a thing
  22. clip — a video
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. chest — of your body

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