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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. swing — to play on
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. swing — in golf
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. degree — temperature
  9. plane — a tool
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. saw — the tool
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. swing — music
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. cold — not warm
  17. rule — government
  18. degree — an amount
  19. degree — from a university
  20. saw — the tool
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — in music
  24. rule — a law

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