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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. chip — for betting
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. chip — to eat
  6. court — for sport
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. kick — in football
  9. field — for sport
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. drill — army training
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. court — of law
  14. degree — temperature
  15. field — farmland
  16. field — a subject
  17. drill — the tool
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. foot — a measure
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. court — of a king
  23. degree — from a university
  24. chip — in a computer

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