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 120 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: bay · kid · degree · cold · cap · pitch

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  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. cold — an illness
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. degree — temperature
  5. cap — a hat
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pitch — completely
  8. cold — not warm
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. degree — from a university
  13. cap — a lid
  14. kid — child
  15. cap — of ice
  16. degree — an amount
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  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