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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. cell — a phone
  4. rash — a series
  5. fork — in a road
  6. rock — music
  7. degree — an amount
  8. rash — hasty
  9. chair — a leader
  10. degree — from a university
  11. stand — to bear
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. rule — a law
  14. rock — a stone
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. rule — government
  17. cell — in biology
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. degree — temperature
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. cell — in a prison

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