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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. squash — the sport
  3. rash — hasty
  4. prune — to trim
  5. squash — to crush
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bark — to shout
  10. chip — to eat
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. degree — temperature
  17. chip — for betting
  18. shower — rain
  19. shower — to wash
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. rash — a series
  22. degree — from a university
  23. prune — to trim
  24. squash — the vegetable

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