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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. court — for sport
  3. degree — an amount
  4. sharp — clever
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bound — obliged
  8. pound — a weight
  9. bound — tied together
  10. march — the month
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bound — certain
  13. court — of law
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. march — the month
  16. mate — a partner
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. march — music
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. court — of a king
  24. degree — temperature

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