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: calf · spell · degree · march · saw · snap · mate · sharp

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — temperature
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. spell — letters
  6. march — music
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. degree — an amount
  9. sharp — clever
  10. spell — a short time
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. mate — to breed
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. saw — the tool
  19. snap — to click
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. spell — magic
  22. mate — a friend
  23. saw — the tool
  24. calf — of the leg

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