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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. degree — temperature
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the sport
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. game — a match
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. game — wild animals
  13. wax — to grow
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. fall — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. degree — from a university
  20. fall — to drop
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. content — the amount
  24. game — a kind of play

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