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: land · march · dip · ground · band · rule · degree · roll

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. march — music
  3. roll — a cake
  4. band — a music group
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. march — the month
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. degree — temperature
  9. degree — from a university
  10. march — the month
  11. land — ground
  12. dip — to sink
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. rule — government
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. rule — a law
  17. land — to come down
  18. roll — a list
  19. band — a ring
  20. ground — the earth
  21. degree — an amount
  22. land — a country
  23. ground — crushed
  24. ground — a position

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