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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. degree — an amount
  3. squash — to crush
  4. bound — obliged
  5. game — a match
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. degree — temperature
  10. race — the arms race
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. bound — tied together
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. chair — a leader
  15. bound — certain
  16. degree — from a university
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. squash — the sport
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. race — a contest
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. race — humankind

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