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 116 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: kick · degree · content · fan · court · tear · board · pound

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. kick — in football
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. degree — temperature
  7. board — to get on
  8. degree — an amount
  9. content — happy
  10. court — of a king
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. degree — from a university
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. content — the amount
  16. court — of law
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. pound — a weight
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. board — a committee
  22. court — for sport
  23. tear — from crying
  24. board — a flat piece

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