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: wind · degree · chair · bass · band · temple · bat · wave

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. bass — low music
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bat — the animal
  12. band — a ring
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — temperature
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. band — a music group
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. chair — to sit on

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