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: squash · deal · race · bore · wind · fall · track · degree

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. degree — an amount
  4. race — a contest
  5. degree — from a university
  6. track — a path
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bore — to tire
  9. fall — to drop
  10. race — humankind
  11. fall — to drop
  12. track — a song
  13. degree — temperature
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — the sport
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. deal — to handle
  20. wind — moving air
  21. fall — the season
  22. race — the arms race
  23. track — to keep track
  24. deal — an agreement

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