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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. craft — a skill
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. degree — from a university
  6. march — the month
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. net — for catching
  9. cell — in biology
  10. field — for sport
  11. face — to point toward
  12. degree — temperature
  13. field — a subject
  14. net — in sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. march — the month
  18. face — to confront
  19. face — part of the head
  20. march — music
  21. craft — boats
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cell — a phone
  24. net — after costs

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