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: rash · bound · pitch · snap · degree · field · cold · bowl

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bound — obliged
  6. cold — not warm
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitch — completely
  9. rash — hasty
  10. snap — to click
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. degree — from a university
  13. field — a subject
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. bound — tied together
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. field — farmland
  21. bound — certain
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — an amount
  24. field — for sport

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