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 116 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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. fine — all right
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — a phone
  6. degree — temperature
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. degree — an amount
  12. board — to get on
  13. pop — soda
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. scale — in music
  16. wake — a trail
  17. degree — from a university
  18. pit — a hole
  19. pit — in a race
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. scale — size or range
  22. board — a committee
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. pop — music

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