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 120 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. craft — a skill
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. ball — a dance
  5. perch — the fish
  6. degree — from a university
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. track — a song
  10. bat — the animal
  11. current — of water
  12. current — happening now
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. track — a path
  15. track — to keep track
  16. hand — in cards
  17. hand — help
  18. current — electric
  19. craft — boats
  20. degree — temperature
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. degree — an amount
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. hand — part of the body

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