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: wound · sharp · jam · cold · stock · rush · foot · degree

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — an amount
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — shares
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. foot — a measure
  11. wound — an injury
  12. sharp — clever
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rush — hurry
  17. wound — an injury
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. cold — not warm
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. degree — from a university
  24. cold — an illness

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