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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. capital — a city
  4. degree — temperature
  5. stand — to bear
  6. wound — an injury
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. capital — money
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. degree — an amount
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bore — to tire
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. bore — to drill
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. mouse — for a computer

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