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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bound — obliged
  3. mark — a grade
  4. stock — shares
  5. bound — tied together
  6. degree — an amount
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. last — final
  9. mark — a trace
  10. stock — goods
  11. last — finally
  12. staff — employees
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. degree — temperature
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — an illness
  18. staff — a stick
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. last — to go on
  21. cap — of ice
  22. staff — employees
  23. bound — certain
  24. degree — from a university

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