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: club · kid · degree · kick · craft · game

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. game — wild animals
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. degree — from a university
  6. club — a group
  7. game — a match
  8. degree — temperature
  9. kid — child
  10. club — for golf
  11. kid — to tease
  12. craft — boats
  13. craft — a skill
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. degree — an amount
  17. club — for dancing
  18. kick — in football

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