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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. foot — a measure
  3. degree — temperature
  4. lie — to recline
  5. degree — an amount
  6. sharp — clever
  7. game — wild animals
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. kid — to tease
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. degree — from a university
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. game — a match
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. wax — to grow
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. foot — the bottom

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