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: date · degree · cap · cold · bear · chest · key · stand

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cap — a hat
  4. chest — a box
  5. bear — the animal
  6. degree — an amount
  7. cap — a lid
  8. degree — from a university
  9. degree — temperature
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. chest — of your body
  13. key — for a lock
  14. key — the most important part
  15. date — the fruit
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. cap — of ice
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. key — in music
  21. stand — to bear
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. chest — of your body
  24. bear — the animal

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