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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  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. race — humankind
  2. perch — the fish
  3. wound — an injury
  4. race — a contest
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. staff — a stick
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. kick — in football
  9. race — the arms race
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. cold — not warm
  12. degree — from a university
  13. degree — an amount
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. cold — an illness
  16. file — a line of people
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. file — a document
  19. staff — employees
  20. file — a tool
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. wound — an injury
  23. staff — employees
  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