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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. saw — the tool
  4. degree — from a university
  5. squash — to crush
  6. mate — a friend
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. mate — to breed
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. degree — temperature
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. spell — magic
  13. content — happy
  14. spell — letters
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. saw — the tool
  20. squash — the sport
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. degree — an amount
  23. content — the amount
  24. mate — a partner

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