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: coach · date · bulb · swing · wound · content · lie · degree

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. bulb — for light
  3. degree — an amount
  4. content — happy
  5. swing — music
  6. bulb — for light
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. content — the amount
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. swing — to play on
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. swing — in golf
  15. wound — an injury
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. degree — from a university
  19. wound — an injury
  20. degree — temperature
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. lie — to recline
  24. date — the fruit

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