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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. degree — an amount
  3. land — ground
  4. row — a line
  5. land — a country
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. root — the cause
  8. fine — high quality
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. row — to paddle
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. land — to come down
  19. degree — from a university
  20. root — of a plant
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. fine — all right
  23. root — of a word
  24. degree — temperature

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