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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. land — to come down
  3. race — a contest
  4. chip — for betting
  5. scale — size or range
  6. press — a publisher
  7. clip — to cut
  8. land — a country
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. degree — from a university
  12. degree — an amount
  13. degree — temperature
  14. press — to push
  15. bat — the animal
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. scale — in music
  18. clip — for paper
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. land — ground
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. race — humankind
  23. clip — a video
  24. chip — to eat

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