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: bass · present · wound · field · degree · cue · net · pitcher

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. cue — a signal
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. bass — low music
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — an injury
  7. present — there
  8. field — for sport
  9. present — a gift
  10. cue — for pool
  11. net — for catching
  12. cue — a hint
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bass — the fish
  15. net — in sport
  16. degree — from a university
  17. net — after costs
  18. present — the time now
  19. degree — an amount
  20. field — farmland
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. field — a subject

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