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 116 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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. fine — all right
  3. race — a contest
  4. degree — an amount
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. degree — from a university
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. net — in sport
  9. staff — a stick
  10. dip — to sink
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. stem — to come from
  13. staff — employees
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — in cards
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. race — the arms race
  19. net — for catching
  20. race — humankind
  21. degree — temperature
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. net — after costs
  24. fine — high quality

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