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: shower · charge · cold · bound · degree · racket · hide · game

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. bound — obliged
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. bound — tied together
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. shower — rain
  9. bound — certain
  10. game — a match
  11. degree — an amount
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. charge — in control
  14. degree — temperature
  15. cold — an illness
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. game — wild animals
  20. charge — electricity
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. degree — from a university
  23. shower — to wash
  24. cold — not warm

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