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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. cap — a lid
  3. degree — from a university
  4. plane — a tool
  5. pitch — completely
  6. content — happy
  7. game — a match
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. cap — of ice
  10. degree — an amount
  11. content — the amount
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. degree — temperature
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cap — a hat
  23. wind — moving air
  24. game — wild animals

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