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 · press · bowl · bear · row · wind

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  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. degree — an amount
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. wind — moving air
  5. press — a publisher
  6. press — to push
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bear — the animal
  9. press — newspapers
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bear — the animal
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. row — a line
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bowl — a football final
  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