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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. race — a contest
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. wound — an injury
  5. race — the arms race
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. degree — from a university
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — what's left
  10. degree — an amount
  11. race — humankind
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. rest — a break
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. degree — temperature
  17. wound — an injury
  18. kick — in football

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