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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — an amount
  3. lean — thin
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. fall — the season
  10. lean — to bend
  11. degree — temperature
  12. cap — a hat
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. cold — not warm
  15. dip — to sink
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. fall — to drop
  18. cap — of ice
  19. plane — a tool
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. cap — a lid
  22. fall — to drop
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cold — the Cold War

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