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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. game — a match
  3. face — to confront
  4. rule — a law
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. degree — from a university
  8. field — for sport
  9. hand — in cards
  10. toast — bread
  11. hand — help
  12. pitch — completely
  13. degree — an amount
  14. field — farmland
  15. degree — temperature
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. game — wild animals
  18. field — a subject
  19. face — to point toward
  20. rule — government
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. face — part of the head

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