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 · pitcher · deal · wake · stem · capital · dip · content

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. deal — to handle
  5. dip — to sink
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. stem — to come from
  17. content — the amount
  18. capital — money
  19. fork — in a road
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. wake — a trail
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. capital — a city
  24. content — videos and posts

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