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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. degree — from a university
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. roll — a list
  5. fall — the season
  6. fall — to drop
  7. degree — temperature
  8. tear — from crying
  9. cue — for pool
  10. cue — a signal
  11. tear — to rip
  12. degree — an amount
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. roll — a cake
  15. content — happy
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. tear — from crying
  18. fall — to drop
  19. perch — the fish
  20. content — the amount
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. perch — for a bird

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