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: pound · season · sharp · snap · wound · staff · kick · degree

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. snap — to click
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. season — of the year
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. pound — a weight
  8. degree — an amount
  9. wound — an injury
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. sharp — clever
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. degree — from a university
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. staff — employees
  19. degree — temperature
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. staff — a stick
  22. wound — an injury
  23. kick — in football
  24. staff — employees

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