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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. file — a tool
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. degree — from a university
  9. degree — temperature
  10. stock — shares
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. row — a line
  16. row — to paddle
  17. roll — a list
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. file — a document
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. stock — goods
  23. file — a line of people
  24. roll — a cake

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