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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. cold — an illness
  3. degree — an amount
  4. tear — to rip
  5. degree — temperature
  6. present — a gift
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. rock — a stone
  12. present — the time now
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chip — to eat
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. degree — from a university
  20. chip — for betting
  21. rock — music
  22. bark — to shout
  23. tear — from crying
  24. present — there

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