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: kick · shower · squash · date · arm · foot · degree · race

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. shower — to wash
  4. squash — to crush
  5. date — the fruit
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. race — humankind
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. race — the arms race
  10. degree — from a university
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. degree — an amount
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. race — a contest
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. degree — temperature
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. kick — in football
  23. squash — the sport
  24. shower — rain

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