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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — a leader
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. toast — bread
  6. last — final
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. dip — to sink
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. bear — the animal
  11. last — finally
  12. last — to go on
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. wind — moving air
  17. degree — an amount
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. bear — the animal
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. land — a country
  22. degree — temperature
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. chair — a professorship

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