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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. ground — a position
  3. row — a line
  4. degree — from a university
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. degree — temperature
  9. ground — crushed
  10. sharp — clever
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. mine — for digging
  14. suit — clothes
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. ground — the earth
  17. fine — all right
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. degree — an amount
  20. fine — high quality
  21. suit — in cards
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. row — to paddle

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