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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. row — a line
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. degree — temperature
  6. mine — for digging
  7. lie — to recline
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. stand — to bear
  10. deal — to handle
  11. degree — from a university
  12. ball — a dance
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. ball — a great time
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. degree — an amount
  23. row — to paddle
  24. patient — a sick person

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