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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. degree — from a university
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. mug — to rob
  7. squash — the sport
  8. squash — to crush
  9. file — a line of people
  10. vault — a safe
  11. mug — a face
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. file — a document
  17. bass — the fish
  18. degree — an amount
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. bass — low music
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. mug — a cup
  24. file — a tool

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