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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. degree — from a university
  4. drill — the tool
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. drill — army training
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. degree — temperature
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. bat — the animal
  13. game — wild animals
  14. game — a match
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. snap — to click
  19. drill — a practice
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. degree — an amount

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