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 120 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 am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. object — an aim
  5. bore — to tire
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. degree — from a university
  8. clip — a video
  9. charge — a price
  10. row — a line
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. row — to paddle
  13. charge — electricity
  14. clip — for paper
  15. clip — to cut
  16. object — a thing
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. charge — in control
  20. object — to protest
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. bore — to drill
  24. degree — temperature

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