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: bulb · cell · stick · degree · swing · chair · face · march

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. swing — in golf
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. bulb — for light
  7. degree — from a university
  8. cell — a phone
  9. face — part of the head
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. march — music
  13. face — to confront
  14. chair — a leader
  15. march — the month
  16. face — to point toward
  17. bulb — for light
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. degree — temperature
  20. swing — to play on
  21. swing — music
  22. march — the month
  23. degree — an amount
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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