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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. degree — an amount
  5. mine — for digging
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. rash — a series
  8. shower — rain
  9. game — a match
  10. hand — help
  11. degree — from a university
  12. game — wild animals
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. shower — to wash
  15. rash — hasty
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. degree — temperature
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. hand — in cards

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