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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. squash — the sport
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. degree — from a university
  5. degree — temperature
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. swing — in golf
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. file — a line of people
  10. wax — to grow
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. swing — to play on
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. stem — to come from
  18. squash — to crush
  19. file — a document
  20. file — a tool
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. degree — an amount
  24. wax — for sculpting

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