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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. season — of the year
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. press — to push
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — an amount
  9. swing — to play on
  10. mine — for digging
  11. dip — to sink
  12. press — newspapers
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. row — to paddle
  15. swing — in golf
  16. row — a line
  17. swing — music
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. deal — to handle
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. degree — from a university
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. season — in sport

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