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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bulb — for light
  3. spell — a short time
  4. march — the month
  5. game — wild animals
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. bulb — for light
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — magic
  10. wound — an injury
  11. game — a match
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. march — the month
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. chair — a leader
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — an amount
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. wound — an injury
  23. degree — temperature
  24. march — music

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