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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. craft — boats
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. craft — a skill
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — a country
  7. degree — temperature
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. degree — from a university
  10. scale — in music
  11. cold — not warm
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. degree — an amount
  17. land — ground
  18. cold — an illness
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. scale — size or range
  22. pit — in a race
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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