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

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. degree — temperature
  3. mate — to breed
  4. mate — a friend
  5. degree — from a university
  6. degree — an amount
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — to wash
  9. content — happy
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. lie — to recline
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. foot — a measure
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. drill — army training
  18. content — the amount
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. drill — a practice
  22. mate — a partner
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. drill — the tool

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