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 116 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: fan · wind · capital · stand · row · nail · race · degree

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. race — the arms race
  3. degree — temperature
  4. race — a contest
  5. degree — an amount
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. stand — to bear
  8. row — a line
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. race — humankind
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — a city
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. wind — moving air
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. row — to paddle
  22. degree — from a university
  23. capital — money
  24. wind — to turn a key

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