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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. game — a match
  8. degree — from a university
  9. game — wild animals
  10. shower — to wash
  11. degree — temperature
  12. present — a gift
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. fine — all right
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. shower — rain
  17. present — the time now
  18. fork — in a road
  19. fine — high quality
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. present — there
  24. degree — an amount

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