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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. chest — of your body
  3. swing — to play on
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. degree — from a university
  11. chest — a box
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. pit — a hole
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. swing — music
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. fork — in a road
  21. swing — in golf
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pit — in a race

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