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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: race · pitch · degree · straw · kid · ball

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. race — the arms race
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. race — a contest
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. kid — child
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. ball — a dance
  10. degree — temperature
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. ball — a great time
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. pitch — completely
  16. degree — from a university
  17. race — humankind
  18. kid — to tease

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