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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bound — certain
  4. rule — a law
  5. spell — letters
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bound — obliged
  8. rule — government
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. bat — the animal
  11. roll — a cake
  12. bound — tied together
  13. spell — magic
  14. roll — a list
  15. degree — from a university
  16. game — wild animals
  17. tear — to rip
  18. game — a match
  19. tear — from crying
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — an amount
  22. spell — a short time
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. roll — on a roll

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