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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. object — a thing
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. degree — from a university
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. mug — a face
  7. mug — to rob
  8. chair — a leader
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. object — to protest
  13. bore — to tire
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bore — to drill
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. mug — a cup
  18. fork — in a road
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. object — an aim
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. mine — for digging
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. shower — rain

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