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: last · club · field · race · degree · fork · cap · firm

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. field — a subject
  3. degree — from a university
  4. field — farmland
  5. race — the arms race
  6. club — for golf
  7. firm — decided
  8. race — a contest
  9. club — for dancing
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. field — for sport
  12. last — finally
  13. race — humankind
  14. cap — of ice
  15. club — a group
  16. cap — a hat
  17. cap — a lid
  18. firm — steady
  19. firm — a company
  20. degree — an amount
  21. last — final
  22. last — to go on
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fork — in a road

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