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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. march — music
  3. march — the month
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. bank — for money
  7. rash — hasty
  8. degree — from a university
  9. rash — a series
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. degree — temperature
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bank — of a river
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. lean — thin
  17. roll — a list
  18. march — the month
  19. bank — for money
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. roll — a cake
  22. degree — an amount
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. straw — a straw man

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