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: pitcher · kid · wound · cap · degree · fall · pop · race

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. pop — music
  3. race — the arms race
  4. cap — a hat
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. degree — an amount
  8. pop — to visit
  9. race — a contest
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pop — soda
  13. kid — to tease
  14. fall — to drop
  15. cap — a lid
  16. kid — child
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. race — humankind
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. degree — temperature
  22. cap — of ice
  23. degree — from a university
  24. fall — to drop

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