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 120 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: club · kick · cold · fan · cue · ball · degree · scale

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. ball — a great time
  3. degree — temperature
  4. cold — not warm
  5. club — a group
  6. cue — for pool
  7. club — for golf
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cue — a signal
  11. scale — in music
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. scale — size or range
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. kick — in football
  17. cue — a hint
  18. club — for dancing
  19. degree — an amount
  20. ball — a dance
  21. cold — an illness
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. kick — a thrill

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