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 ________________ took off on time.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. degree — temperature
  5. pound — a weight
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. band — a ring
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. band — a music group
  12. pitch — completely
  13. degree — an amount
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. spring — the season
  16. rash — a series
  17. bat — the animal
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. spring — a coil
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. spring — of water
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. degree — from a university
  24. plane — a tool

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