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 120 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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. mug — a face
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. swing — music
  8. sharp — clever
  9. bat — the animal
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — from a university
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. swing — to play on
  15. mug — a cup
  16. swing — in golf
  17. degree — temperature
  18. cold — an illness
  19. wind — moving air
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bat — in an idiom

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