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: degree · jam · court · roll · lash · chest · pound · chair

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. court — for sport
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. chest — of your body
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. roll — a cake
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. pound — a weight
  12. court — of a king
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. degree — an amount
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. degree — temperature
  21. court — of law
  22. chair — a leader
  23. degree — from a university
  24. pound — to hit hard

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