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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. bank — of a river
  4. cell — in biology
  5. ground — a position
  6. ground — crushed
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. march — the month
  9. degree — an amount
  10. scale — size or range
  11. row — a line
  12. degree — temperature
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — soda
  15. scale — in music
  16. bank — for money
  17. march — the month
  18. ground — the earth
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. degree — from a university
  21. row — to paddle
  22. march — music
  23. pop — music
  24. cell — a phone

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