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: bat · coach · prune · mine · cue · field · racket · capital

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bat — the animal
  4. cue — for pool
  5. prune — to trim
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. capital — a city
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. field — farmland
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. field — a subject
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. cue — a signal
  17. capital — money
  18. prune — to trim
  19. cue — a hint
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. field — for sport
  22. mine — for digging
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. bat — in an idiom

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