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: cold · toast · present · sharp · wave · fan · spell · capital

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. spell — magic
  3. capital — money
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. cold — not warm
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. present — a gift
  11. cold — an illness
  12. spell — letters
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. spell — a short time
  15. toast — bread
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. present — the time now
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. capital — a city
  23. present — there
  24. sharp — clever

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