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 · date · capital · snap · chest · pound

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. pound — a weight
  3. capital — money
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. date — the fruit
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. capital — a city
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. snap — to click
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — an amount
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — of your body
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. degree — from a university

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