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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. degree — temperature
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. degree — from a university
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. degree — an amount
  11. field — farmland
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wound — an injury
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — a subject
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. kid — child
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. shower — rain
  20. wind — moving air
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. kid — to tease
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. shower — to wash

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