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: wave · rock · degree · capital · bear · game · cold · lash

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. degree — from a university
  3. game — wild animals
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. bear — the animal
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. degree — an amount
  9. bear — the animal
  10. capital — a city
  11. degree — temperature
  12. rock — a stone
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. rock — music
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — money
  18. game — a match
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. lash — to lash out

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