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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. foot — a measure
  3. rash — a series
  4. degree — an amount
  5. tear — from crying
  6. degree — temperature
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. tear — from crying
  9. degree — from a university
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. clip — for paper
  13. present — a gift
  14. clip — to cut
  15. pound — a weight
  16. bore — to tire
  17. rash — hasty
  18. present — there
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. tear — to rip
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. present — the time now
  23. clip — a video
  24. pound — to hit hard

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