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 120 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: row · degree · bat · file · rash · bound · pass · court

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bound — tied together
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. file — a document
  6. row — to paddle
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bat — the animal
  9. rash — hasty
  10. court — of a king
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of law
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. pass — a permit
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. bound — certain
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a tool
  21. rash — a series
  22. degree — from a university
  23. row — a line
  24. bound — obliged

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