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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. degree — an amount
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — a subject
  5. press — newspapers
  6. cap — of ice
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. cap — a hat
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. press — to push
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. chip — for betting
  15. lean — to bend
  16. wind — moving air
  17. degree — from a university
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. degree — temperature
  21. field — for sport
  22. chip — to eat
  23. lean — thin
  24. cap — a lid

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