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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. lie — to recline
  3. shower — rain
  4. degree — from a university
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. roll — a cake
  7. swing — music
  8. roll — a list
  9. degree — temperature
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. degree — an amount
  12. last — to go on
  13. swing — in golf
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. tear — from crying
  17. last — final
  18. tear — from crying
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. shower — to wash
  21. swing — to play on
  22. last — finally
  23. tear — to rip
  24. roll — on a roll

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