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: stock · safe · land · cold · row · capital · content · board

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. row — a line
  5. board — a committee
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. board — to get on
  9. stock — goods
  10. capital — a city
  11. land — ground
  12. land — a country
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — not warm
  15. row — to paddle
  16. cold — an illness
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. capital — money
  20. stock — shares
  21. content — happy
  22. content — the amount
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. land — to come down

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