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 · mark · pitcher · pop · pass · shower · kid · swing

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. degree — from a university
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. pop — soda
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pop — to visit
  8. degree — an amount
  9. pop — music
  10. shower — to wash
  11. degree — temperature
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. swing — music
  15. kid — child
  16. pass — a permit
  17. mark — a trace
  18. mark — a grade
  19. shower — rain
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — to play on
  24. mark — to pay attention

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