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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. degree — from a university
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. rest — what's left
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. pass — a permit
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. stem — to come from
  11. degree — temperature
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. degree — an amount
  16. cell — a phone
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. game — a match
  21. game — wild animals
  22. cell — in biology
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. rest — what's left

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