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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. degree — an amount
  3. last — final
  4. march — music
  5. kick — in football
  6. mate — a friend
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — in cards
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. last — finally
  13. last — to go on
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. mate — to breed
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. degree — temperature
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. mate — a partner
  21. degree — from a university
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. fork — in a road

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