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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. branch — a division
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. race — the arms race
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. degree — temperature
  8. race — a contest
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. clip — a video
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — a break
  13. clip — for paper
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. date — the fruit
  16. degree — from a university
  17. rest — what's left
  18. pass — a permit
  19. mine — for digging
  20. clip — to cut
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. race — humankind
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. mine — an explosive

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