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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bass — the fish
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. vault — a safe
  5. game — a match
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bark — to shout
  9. net — in sport
  10. mug — to rob
  11. net — for catching
  12. mug — a face
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. mug — a cup
  15. game — wild animals
  16. prune — to trim
  17. degree — from a university
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bass — low music
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. net — after costs
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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