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: straw · degree · cold · stick · arm · kick · lean · dip

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cold — not warm
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. lean — thin
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. dip — to sink
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. cold — an illness
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. degree — from a university
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. lean — to bend
  23. kick — in football
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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