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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bass — the fish
  3. pitch — completely
  4. degree — temperature
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. pound — a weight
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. prune — to trim
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a line
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. bass — low music
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. prune — to trim
  21. degree — an amount
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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