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: degree · board · kid · wind · march · root

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — child
  4. board — to get on
  5. degree — temperature
  6. root — of a plant
  7. wind — moving air
  8. march — music
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. root — the cause
  11. board — a committee
  12. march — the month
  13. march — the month
  14. degree — an amount
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. wind — moving air
  17. degree — from a university
  18. root — of a word

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