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 116 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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. spring — the season
  5. court — for sport
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. court — of a king
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. pit — a hole
  10. scale — in music
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. degree — an amount
  13. band — a music group
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. scale — size or range
  16. rush — hurry
  17. spring — a coil
  18. band — a ring
  19. pit — in a race
  20. degree — temperature
  21. spring — of water
  22. degree — from a university
  23. court — of law
  24. wake — before a funeral

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