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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. present — there
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. snap — to click
  5. degree — from a university
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — from crying
  8. net — in sport
  9. degree — temperature
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — to drop
  13. chip — to eat
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. present — a gift
  16. net — for catching
  17. present — the time now
  18. tear — to rip
  19. fall — the season
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. degree — an amount
  24. net — after costs

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