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 116 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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. last — final
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bass — the fish
  5. last — to go on
  6. degree — an amount
  7. cap — a hat
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. kick — in football
  10. bass — low music
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. last — finally
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. kid — child
  20. pitch — completely
  21. cap — of ice
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — temperature

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