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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. degree — an amount
  3. can — a tin
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. fall — the season
  7. game — wild animals
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. hand — help
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. fall — to drop
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. degree — temperature
  17. can — a tin
  18. hand — in cards
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. game — a match
  21. degree — from a university
  22. can — to be able to
  23. wind — moving air
  24. racket — for tennis

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