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: board · pitcher · capital · degree · bore · squash · rule · date

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bore — to tire
  3. degree — from a university
  4. squash — the sport
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. rule — a law
  7. capital — money
  8. rule — government
  9. date — the fruit
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. board — a committee
  12. degree — an amount
  13. squash — to crush
  14. capital — a city
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. board — to get on
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. degree — temperature
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. bore — to drill

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