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 116 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: ground · stock · craft · last · season · rush · trunk · capital

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. last — finally
  4. capital — money
  5. ground — the earth
  6. craft — a skill
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. ground — a position
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. last — to go on
  11. craft — boats
  12. season — in sport
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. ground — crushed
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. stock — shares
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. stock — goods
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. capital — a city
  21. last — final
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. season — of the year

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