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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. degree — temperature
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. mark — a trace
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. lean — thin
  11. lean — to bend
  12. degree — from a university
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. date — the fruit
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. capital — money
  17. mark — a grade
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. capital — a city
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. degree — an amount
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. rush — to hurry

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