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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. degree — temperature
  3. spell — magic
  4. degree — an amount
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. spell — a short time
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. spell — letters
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. degree — from a university
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. game — a match
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — for digging
  19. present — the time now
  20. present — there
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. chip — to eat
  23. present — a gift
  24. chip — for betting

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