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: court · scale · capital · race · band · branch · mine · cap

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. scale — in music
  3. race — humankind
  4. cap — a hat
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. cap — of ice
  8. race — a contest
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. cap — a lid
  11. capital — money
  12. court — of a king
  13. band — a ring
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mine — for digging
  17. capital — a city
  18. race — the arms race
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. court — of law
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. branch — a division
  23. court — for sport
  24. band — a music group

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