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: roll · plane · kid · stock · drill · wind · degree · mate

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. roll — a cake
  3. drill — army training
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. kid — child
  6. mate — a partner
  7. plane — a tool
  8. drill — the tool
  9. stock — shares
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. kid — to tease
  13. degree — temperature
  14. wind — moving air
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. mate — a friend
  18. drill — a practice
  19. degree — an amount
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. mate — to breed
  22. stock — goods
  23. roll — a list
  24. degree — from a university

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