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: current · march · wound · pass · race · degree · game · tube

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. current — happening now
  4. current — of water
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. pass — a permit
  7. race — a contest
  8. degree — temperature
  9. march — the month
  10. degree — from a university
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — humankind
  14. wound — an injury
  15. march — music
  16. tube — a container
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. game — a match
  19. current — electric
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. game — wild animals
  22. degree — an amount
  23. wound — an injury
  24. tube — the underground

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