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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. object — a thing
  3. object — to protest
  4. degree — an amount
  5. track — to keep track
  6. tube — the underground
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. track — a song
  10. cue — for pool
  11. object — an aim
  12. cue — a signal
  13. sharp — clever
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. track — a path
  16. squash — the sport
  17. branch — a division
  18. cue — a hint
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. squash — to crush
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. degree — temperature
  24. branch — of a tree

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