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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. fall — to drop
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — from a university
  5. degree — an amount
  6. stock — goods
  7. band — a ring
  8. content — happy
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. content — the amount
  11. fall — to drop
  12. mate — to breed
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. fall — the season
  15. dip — to sink
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. mate — a partner
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. bear — the animal
  21. stock — shares
  22. bear — the animal
  23. mate — a friend
  24. band — a music group

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