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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. degree — an amount
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. degree — from a university
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. degree — temperature
  7. press — newspapers
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. press — a publisher
  11. press — to push
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ground — the earth
  15. rash — a series
  16. vault — a safe
  17. capital — money
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. pound — a weight
  21. ground — a position
  22. capital — a city
  23. rash — hasty
  24. nail — for a hammer

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