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 · sharp · cue · bear · lash · net · wound · stem

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. cue — a signal
  3. net — after costs
  4. cue — a hint
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. stem — to come from
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bear — the animal
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — temperature
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. net — for catching
  18. wound — an injury
  19. cue — for pool
  20. sharp — clever
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. bear — the animal
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. net — in 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